Familiar
by Laryna6
Summary: One of the abilities Frankenstein copied from nobles was the power to bind animals to his service. Before long, the strangely-empty manor contains an owl, several ravens, a few especially useful species and a certain singular noble. 'You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed.'
1. Chapter 1

_And it's another Flashback Era AU! Because there is no such thing as too many of those._

 _I have a more elaborate set of missing scenes idea of what happened after the curtain closed on Rai and Frankenstein's first meeting – but I will write it another time. This is about getting a bunny off my chest to get myself writing._

 _Apparently there's a canon depiction of mental communication between Rai and animals in Noblesse S. (And I would love a complete translation of that webnovel.) This is probably not like it at all, but we can attribute that to Frankenstein's powers being slightly different and/or birds are not like dogs, the familiar bond (like a contract, but not the same mechanic) still altering the animals a bit, etc._

* * *

Frankenstein was exhausted even before fighting those two clan leaders. The Central Order Knights had pursued him for several days, to the point his best hope of getting some sleep somewhere they wouldn't think to look for him was Lukedonia itself. Getting there safely wasn't just a matter of moving fast, but undetected by the patrols – if they guessed the direction he was traveling, they might realize that yes, he _did_ have the gall.

That old man, Gejutel K. Landegre was the one to figure out Frankenstein's plan. Frankenstein already knew how much of an advantage age and experience could give someone, but he would have to do better now that he was facing clan leaders. He couldn't make stupid mistakes, but sleep deprivation made those inevitable.

'I work here,' he'd said, completely missing that a noble had read his mind until afterwards, being so slow to process it and respond when the noble detected Dark Spear, and then his shock when the noble went along with his transparent lie.

Frankenstein needed to think faster than his enemies; he couldn't afford to be so slow on the uptake. Did Cadis Etrama di Raizel have some ulterior motive? What was the reason for all this? It made no sense right now, and that was a sign he'd gone without sleep for far too long, he thought, adjusting his cuffs and feeling the texture of the lace on the sleeves of the undershirt. A boastful indulgence: lace took a great deal of time to make, although he'd invented a loom that could speed up the process. It marked a gentleman of leisure, someone with the free time to think and invent. Someone who _wasn't_ harried constantly from base to base, with no time to sleep or think of a way to defeat his foes.

There his thoughts went, circling back to sleep, he thought, quickening his steps as he headed for the nearest door to the outside.

Reaching out to open it, he hesitated. The clan leaders might be waiting outside to ambush him, but if he could get back to the threshold first he might be fine. He couldn't put this off or he might grow exhausted enough his body's hunger for _sleep_ would override his knowledge that he needed a watcher.

Stepping outside the door, he extended all of his senses. No nobles anywhere nearby, save for the one in the house behind him, who hadn't moved from his spot at that window. The Kertia clan leader had surprised him earlier, but Frankenstein's attention was focused on the immediate threat at the time. Who would expect two clan leaders?

What besides clan leaders could he expect to find in the land of the nobles? Wolves would be ideal. Bears were imposing, but ultimately incapable of putting up a fight against a mutant. Smaller animals dodged better – ah, an owl. As a companion they were far from ideal, there were much smarter birds – he missed access to parrots, it would have taken him longer to uncover the Union's duplicity without them – but owls were nocturnal, possessed good senses and weren't as vulnerable to the cold. He could send it out scouting after he woke up.

He sighed. There he was, standing here like an idiot, letting his mind wander to the long term. If he didn't keep a tight rein on his thoughts they'd wander off into dreams and the next thing he knew he'd wake up slumped over on his desk. Except no, he didn't have a desk right now, he'd needed to destroy his latest base and been flushed out of most of his backup refuges by the Central Order Knights' hunt.

He tracked the bird through the night until it was close enough that he was sure he could grab it out of the air without mistiming his leap or applying enough force to kill the poor thing.

Meeting its eyes, he put it to sleep – no reason to scare it, or let it cut up his new suit.

At first, he'd balked a little at taking an animal's blood. He'd forced himself to conduct those tests of his stolen copy of vampiric powers because he needed to understand how their mind control abilities worked if he was going to have any hope of freeing their victims. Since he couldn't exactly experiment with mind-controlling himself, animal testing was the best alternative.

He wasn't a real vampire, so his familiars weren't infectious. They still possessed senses and physical capabilities superior to the norm for their species. That and the ability to communicate with him over limited distances made them incredible scouts.

These days, he could easily subdue even units of Central Order Knights, but when he first discovered the ability to control animals, even a single mutant could be a challenge if he didn't feel them coming in time to cheat.

A practiced cut with his powers got him that drop of blood, and after ingesting it he checked the owl's leg to be certain the wound was healed and transferred her to a secure perch on his forearm before waking her up.

Thankfully she wasn't too hungry, and the simplicity of owls meant there wasn't much need to negotiate. A promise of mice soon, and a place to rest for the day unmolested by those blasted ravens, and he had her shifting her talons up his arm to get at his hair.

' _I should find more than one_ ,' he knew, but having a pleased animal linked to his mind was calming. The certain knowledge that if he was ambushed in his sleep all would be lost that was the only thing keeping him on his feet. Now that he had a familiar, it wouldn't be long before he crashed.

Heading back into the manor for lack of other options, he retraced his footsteps to a room with a heavy cabinet that didn't quite reach the ceiling and settled her up there before lying down on the (unswept, but he was too tired to care enough to do anything about it) floor. He could hope that if a noble did try to ambush him while he was asleep, they wouldn't see the owl up there and get her under control before her alarm could wake him.

Pillowing his head on an arm, he slept. Normally he needed less than half an hour, but…

* * *

Sun coming in through the window and falling on his black coat woke him: he raised his head to feel his new owl's sleepy request for… mice. Right.

It was a familiar chore: he had to establish a new mouse breeding population (or rabbits, or something along those lines) every single time he needed to set up a new lab. Some kind of fast-breeding animal, and an enclosure so they didn't get into his papers and leave droppings everywhere (he shuddered at the thought), and food. Frankenstein himself didn't need much food anymore, so food for himself was a lower priority, but he still tried to get a meal, or at least something warm to drink, every day.

Something to make him feel more human.

"Sorry," he told the owl, reaching up to scratch under her feathers with a practiced hand. "I'll bring you something to eat soon."

She seemed too pleased to mind, ready to fall asleep herself. Thoughts of ravens harrying her during the day made their way to his mind: it would be hard for them to swoop at her in a confined space like this. "Yes, you're safe here," he said, smiling.

 _Ravens_ now. Wasn't that convenient. Wonderfully smart birds, able to remember individual humans (and likely nobles) and give him some idea of the people in a new area, often enough. They also had a good eye for detail and made fantastic scouts.

He'd just have to keep them away from his new owl. They really couldn't help themselves; it was instinct for them to make owls' lives miserable.

Bind enough ravens, and they could bring him the mice he needed. Hopefully they would know where he could find some wolves. With that, if he had some cats or foxes he could feel reasonably secure here. Even a powerful noble should only be able to keep so many minds, even weak ones, under control at once. He theorized that if he had enough familiars, _all_ of them going silent should still be strange enough to get his attention even when he was focused on a project.

* * *

Raizel's eyes widened slightly. There was a black bird flying towards his window! He wished he could see it up close, but he still reached out to tell it that the glass was in the way, and the bird would be hurt if it tried to fly through the glass to see Raizel.

It perched on the outside of the windowsill and tapped on the glass with its beak.

"?"

" _Open."_

Carefully, Raizel reached out and turned the window handle the direction the Lord showed him when these new, larger and clearer windows he designed were installed.

The bird got out of the way, then flew back to the windowsill. Cawing approvingly, it hopped onto Raizel's outstretched arm, then looked at the door.

Raizel walked over and opened the door, too.

He went where the bird wanted him to go, trying not to stare at the living thing perched so confidently on his white shirtsleeve, remembering a small hand that tugged him to where-he-should-be-to-not-get-hurt.

He could sense traces of the human's aura from the bird. Not the small human, but the human who came to his house last night. Raizel could still feel him here, when he looked. Still surrounded by that hatred, but focused and unharmed. It was almost as much of a surprise as being touched like this.

The bird's mind wanted to look in all the rooms, like the human – Frankenstein – had last night. Raizel had given Frankenstein his own name because the human didn't know how strong he was or why the clan leaders had bowed to him. It was supposed to be an explanation: he hadn't expected the human to give his name in return.

Raizel sighed. He should have said he was the Noblesse: of course his name wouldn't mean anything to a human. Most nobles didn't know who he was. The real reason he hadn't simply said that he was the Noblesse was because of his brother. He didn't want his guest to be scared of him, especially when Frankenstein wanted so much to sleep… but the humans shouldn't know what the Noblesse was, so that wouldn't have helped Frankenstein either. Should he explain? Frankenstein wanted to know, but the existence of the Noblesse was supposed to be known only to the clan leaders.

They drew closer and closer to the room where Frankenstein was, Raizel opening doors, letting the bird look around, and then leaving to open the next door.

When they finally reached Frankenstein, he was in the kitchen the Lord had added to the house after explaining to Raizel what the round brown thing Yuni gave him was. The bird jumped down from his arm to walk over to Frankenstein's feet. Frankenstein was staring at him, but not with hidden fear. Raizel could sense wariness, yes. Frankenstein was prepared in case he attacked, but while he was a little surprised that Raizel had come with the bird, there wasn't any panic beating against Raizel's mind.

He could have met Frankenstein's eyes, or stayed and gotten a better picture of his emotions, but that would be rude.

The bird didn't want anything more from him, so Raizel went back to the window hopefully.

If the bird wanted to see Frankenstein, then maybe more birds would come to Raizel's window in order to visit him.

* * *

Frankenstein didn't quite know what to make of Cadis Etrama di Raizel. He might have come to Frankenstein's assistance because he was one of those nobles who believed that weak humans were in need of looking after, but that wouldn't explain the birds. Or maybe it was simple, and this noble was just a pushover. That would explain why he'd come to Frankenstein's assistance, let the human keep his shirt and why Frankenstein's ravens were able to use him as a door and window-opener. Even the owl had Raizel carry her to the perch Frankenstein built for her after returning late one morning from helping Frankenstein figure out which clan held the manor to the north-northwest.

Frankenstein appreciated the necessity of having more than one way in or out of any location but having all the windows in the house open was just begging for leaves and worse to blow in.

At least the fact Cadis Etrama di Raizel didn't come to visit him except at the behest of one of his familiars meant he had forewarning of the noble's approach even though he hadn't assigned any of them to watch him yet.

After having to take time two days in a row to go through the manor and close all the windows except the one he'd chosen to leave open and the one in the noble's room, he couldn't put it off any longer. Frankenstein had to pay a call on Cadis Etrama di Raizel.

He found the noble staring out the window again, the way he was when Frankenstein saw him for the second time, the way he was usually was when Frankenstein's familiars saw him.

It took a moment for Cadis Etrama di Raizel to turn away from the window and look at Frankenstein, acknowledging the human's presence.

"Please stop opening all the windows."

Raizel half-turned to glance out his own window.

"You can do as you like with the window in here," Frankenstein had almost said 'your window' even though _every_ window in this house seemed to belong to the noble, "but opening the other windows will just let in leaves and insects and worse. The ravens want pests to infest your manor so that they can eat them."

The noble just kept looking at him. Frankenstein fought down the urge to fidget nervously, and stood straight even though this noble might be more powerful than the clan leaders.

"I do not mind," the noble said, still meeting his eyes even though Frankenstein was as sure as he could be that there wasn't any mind control involved.

That should be that: Raizel was the master of this house, so if he wanted it to be a dirty, rodent-infested wreck then how could Frankenstein argue, when he was a guest… Frankenstein smiled. Except he wasn't. "Since you told the clan leaders that I am responsible for taking care of this house, it would reflect badly on me if the place was a mess." Raizel's face fell slightly, and Frankenstein hastened to add, "You can do as you like with the window in your room; I'll be happy to come in here and clean sometimes." And make observations of the noble through his own eyes, instead of getting secondhand reports from animals with less in the way of mental defenses.

The noble looked a little surprised, but when Frankenstein gave him a broad smile, Raizel nodded slightly and turned back to his window.


	2. Chapter 2

Out of all the possible ways he might react to being informed there was a noble in his lab, Frankenstein hadn't expected one of them to ever be, "I'm sorry." He stood up and went around to the other side of his desk to give the bird a chastising look, one of the wolves getting up out of the pile to walk alongside him. "They're taking advantage of you even more now that they have fewer shortcuts."

Because Frankenstein could no longer conduct research in a room with an exterior window. Obviously that would be better, between natural light and venting chemical fumes, but Union spies were one thing. In _Lukedonia_? Like _hell_ he was handing his research over to the damned nobles!

He had set up a room for the ravens, and a small room for the owl, and there was also a pet door where a normal kitchen would have taken deliveries, but some of his familiars had significant wingspans and even if these hallways were larger than human hallways (a normal house like this would have been a drafty barn, impossible to keep at a decent temperature), Raizel was convenient.

"I do not mind," Raizel said again, and turned to go, errand complete.

Even though the noble left without even glancing at the research on Frankenstein's desk, Frankenstein still didn't understand how a noble had gotten as close as the door of this room without something alerting him.

Frankenstein had spent a couple of months in this manor, but he'd allowed prisoners to live longer than that before, when he needed information out of them, had longer-term tests to run or needed a target while he trained. He had never grown used to a noble's aura enough to tune it out.

Raizel's aura was very powerful, so perhaps Frankenstein had grown desensitized to it? Normally how strong a noble's aura felt could be used to judge how far away they were, but Raizel's aura was strong enough it didn't drop off as rapidly as expected as the noble retraced his steps through the manor. So it made sense that Raizel drawing closer hadn't drawn his attention.

As of yet Frankenstein had no idea how long Raizel had lived in his manor: normally the nobles he encountered were intruders in the human world, and their auras stuck out like a sore thumb, but Raizel belonged here. His aura had sunk into the wood and stone and plaster.

He gave the raven at its perch on his desk a stern look. "You are not helping." The raven preened itself, complete unconcerned. "Let's see what you brought me," he said, holding out his hand. Juvenile ravens adored anything new and unusual, a very fortunate trait for someone who needed to know the instant new and unusual people invaded the area around one of his labs.

Purple strands? Hair. Not dyed. Unless there were humans on this earth somewhere with purple hair, that clan wasn't enforcing the noble 'dress code' decreed by the lords on its members. Well, that cemented the Tradio Clan Leader's place on the suspect list.

* * *

Frankenstein had a rule about animals on the furniture: he built them their _own_ furniture, and they were supposed to use it. Normally the wolves' den was under his bed.

That was what he'd like to be normal, anyway. He didn't want to admit that the wolves had damn near organized a rota, but he could be fairly certain which one he'd wake up to find in his bed on a given night. He was a light sleeper: he shouldn't miss a full-grown wolf settling around him in the middle of the night, but wolves were social animals. They saw him as part of the family, and they certainly weren't going to attack him so why should he worry about it?

Dark Spear was unusually active today. Thinking about the criminal clan leaders and not going and getting them their revenge: of course it enraged them. He tried to promise them that someday they would have justice, he'd sworn by everything he held dear to free them, but they still were suffering _now_. Their fates were so unfair, and when he didn't provide them with a target who were they supposed to turn their anger on but him?

So he kept his peace when he arrived in his bedroom to find the second oldest of the male cubs already in his bed, displacing his pillow. Saying he didn't need help didn't make it so, and he needed to keep going, keep fighting. Having a familiar watching over his sleep made it easier to sleep: he was going to shut up and be glad that _something_ helped.

When one of the parents started lifting up the new pups he told himself that he should probably be bonding with them anyway. He could control his familiars, but that took up his time and attention. It was better when he could train them and leave them to exercise their own initiative.

"Just don't exercise by running laps of my bed," he told the smallest, setting them down by his feet where they could be fascinated by his toes. Then he had to close his mouth, barely in time before he was attacked with slobbery kisses.

Wolves were wild animals, and at first he'd thought he would need to enforce a position of dominance, but given the family structure of wolf packs, a position of 'Grandpa who gives us all the nice treats,' worked much better for him. Not that he'd recommend it to any animal trainer who didn't have a mental link with the animals and couldn't survive playful, affectionate bites from a jaw capable of exerting enough force to crunch bone.

Babysitter secured, the parents went off to hunt, nosing the door nearly shut behind them.

Well. It was one thing to be considered an invalid, and another to be doing an important job.

…Now he really _couldn't_ let Dark Spear come to the surface, he thought, obediently scratching the cub that had pointedly nosed its way under his right hand. It was one thing if they derived some satisfaction from taking their anger out on him, but they shouldn't have the suffering of innocent animals on their consciences. They weren't in their right minds.

They were helpless. He'd performed his research so that people wouldn't be helpless in the face of mutants and their makers again, and someone took his research, the fruit of his dream, and used it to do _this_?

He sighed, closing his eyes not in peace but with shame.

There came a knock on the door, and he almost jumped and spilled three wolves onto the floor. Someone finding him when he should have been _asleep_ should have sent him out an interior wall, but he could feel it was Raizel.

And that was how he thought of what he felt: not 'a noble,' but Raizel. "What is it?" he asked, with concern instead of caution.

The question was 'why was Raizel here?' instead of 'what is Raizel planning to do to me?'

"The ravens' perch has come unscrewed."

Meaning one of them unscrewed it, Frankenstein thought as he rubbed his hand over his face and groaned. "Come in, they can perch on the headboard. Mind taking my owl with you? She's on the top of the dresser." Nocturnal advantage or not, he wasn't leaving his owl in here with those pranksters.

Raizel pushed the door open, and in the darkness his hair almost seemed to blend with their feathers as he leaned over Frankenstein so the birds could arrange themselves to their liking with an excessive amount of discussion and too many wings hitting Frankenstein in the face. One of the wolves lost their patience and snapped at a raven, and Frankenstein had to mentally intervene to keep the wolves from deciding that revenge on the ravens was tonight's new game.

When Frankenstein had a clear view of Raizel again, he was reaching up for the owl's wickedly sharp talons to encircle his strangely delicate wrist (the noble had clearly never worked a day in his life). Without another word he headed for the door.

It was common courtesy (and the refusal to be barbaric in the presence of a noble, give them an excuse to look down on him) that made him say, "Thank you."

For the first time, he realized, frowning at himself. Had he really not said it to Raizel before? He had given the noble his name the night they met, but even if the noble was psychic that wasn't the same as _admitting_ gratitude.

Red eyes turned to him, and it struck Frankenstein that the room was pitch-black. If he was a normal human, he would have seen nothing but glowing eyes in the darkness. Did Raizel know the limits of his enhancements?

Were those eyes glowing for Frankenstein's sake, so he would be able to see where the noble was?

"I do not mind," Raizel told him, and left the room, his firm and steady steps clearly audible on the wooden floor.

* * *

When Ragar Kertia came to visit, Frankenstein was tempted to leave the noble waiting at the door, but the risk that he would simply come in was too great. It wasn't as though there was anyone to let him and the Landegre in when they came for Frankenstein, and he wasn't letting an assassin roam around his – the house where he was staying and end up in his lab.

Not to mention that he was 'Raizel's servant,' and he refused to do a subpar job of it. He'd made his bed by choosing that as his cover story, and acting as though he knew exactly what he was doing and had meant to do everything he did was the best way to handle nobles. He wasn't going to admit embarrassment in front of a clan leader.

He waited only until the noble finished knocking, and opened it before he could begin knocking a second time. "Shall I show you to Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel's room?" he asked, smiling.

Ragar looked at him earnestly – despite that facemask, he was easy to read. Perhaps too easy? – and said, "I am here to speak with you."

"Oh?" he drawled. "What about?"

Ragar explained and Frankenstein had to ask for confirmation that he was hearing this right. Was this clan leader just offering Frankenstein the chance to practice his technique? Volunteering as target practice? When he was developing those attacks and needed control over Dark Spear _for the purpose of killing clan leaders like Ragar_?

Well, it did mean that when Frankenstein became capable of killing clan leaders, Ragar would be the first to know. Ideally not long before he died, but, "Why not?" It wasn't his duty to warn a several-thousand-year-old clan leader that he was putting his life in danger.

Rather he had already warned Ragar not to underestimate humans.

Frankenstein would also be at risk of serious injury or death in their battles, but with his familiars he should have enough cover and warning to escape if someone tried to attack him while he wasn't in peak condition… And Raizel had said that he would send Frankenstein to see the Lord _when he recovered_. If Frankenstein was still recovering then he should be able to remain here, even if he was recovering from newer injuries.

"By the way," he asked, "will anyone try to capture me if I make a trip to the human world for medicines and other supplies?"

The noble had the unmitigated gall to blink at him. "Do you require an escort while you are recovering?"

Frankenstein scoffed. "An escort? To make sure I don't run off."

"To intervene if the criminals try to capture you."

"As though I need your help."

"Forgive me for the offense," the noble said, and bowed.

A clan leader. Actually bowed. To a human.

While Frankenstein was still frozen, Ragar straightened up as though there was absolutely nothing abnormal about what he'd just done.

Frankenstein scrambled to regain his mental footing. "So if I accept a guard, I'll be allowed to run errands in the human world?"

The noble just looked at him silently for awhile. "Is that what Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel has decided?"

Him? Decide anything? He spent two hours every morning failing to decide what shirt to wear! Frankenstein reached up and rubbed his temples. "If I go to the human world, will you and the other clan leaders try to capture me to deliver me to the Lord?"

"No," Ragar told him. He paused, than said, "If you are willing to permit an escort, I would be grateful for the opportunity to be of service to the Lord by eliminating those who have abandoned their honor as nobles?"

"No," Frankenstein said, because given the opportunity for a human to say no to a clan leader, he really _had_ to seize it.

He left the menagerie behind on the run to the mainland. There wasn't anything too dangerous in his lab… _Yet_. He needed to see if Raizel or some clan leader was stupid enough to try to break into his lab the first time he left it. If they were smart, they'd wait until Frankenstein had turned his back on them several times to lure him into a false sense of security before striking, but the greedy were fools.

* * *

 _Guessing Frankenstein hadn't dealt with purebloods before Gejutel and Ragar. Remember what Rael did to the school, and how he cleared out the area where he later fought Frankenstein? Frankenstein in this is really underestimating how many minds the higher-level locals can control at once, but when Rael froze the school the Trio were unaffected, so Frankenstein giving his menagerie boosts to their mental defenses should up the odds they'd be able to resist a pureblood noble's powers long enough to warn him._

 _Remember Frankenstein's 'I don't spar' when he was refusing to train RK (before Seira wanted training and well then). Think about that conversation and the fact he was fighting Ragar and Gejutel in the flashback era – and nearly killed Urokai and went 'drat, didn't manage to finish you off' during what was supposed to be a 'spar' between them._


	3. Chapter 3

When Frankenstein returned home he found his lab intact, but Raizel's room was practically carpeted in fur and feathers. "What happened?" he demanded. He could feel all of his familiars, none of them were dead, but there were bloodstains on the floor along with shards of broken glass and torn couch pillows.

"I only have two hands," the noble said apologetically.

Frankenstein stared at him. "They were fighting over who got your attention?"

Raizel nodded, and sighed.

"Just refuse to pet any of them if they make you uncomfortable by attacking each other. You don't always have to do as they ask." Frankenstein shook his head and went to go fetch a broom and dustpan. He didn't have the equipment to make window glass set up yet, but it wouldn't take that long to remove the window panes from another room and install them in Raizel's window – shutters to cover that room's windows would be simple enough to make.

He should redecorate the room while he was at it – Raizel's visitors spent most of their time in this room, so it would be the most effective place to make a mark and claim power over this territory and Raizel. Their reactions could tell him much.

When he came back to Raizel's room with the cleaning supplies, he hummed to himself while sweeping up the mess. Feeling that someone was watching him, he looked up to see Raizel was riveted not by him, but by the messenger bag on his hip. "I'm not putting them down until I'm sure I've got all the glass," he said, but he did unclasp the bag. With his enhanced speed, he could be reasonably certain that he could catch them if they made a break for it.

Raizel's eyes widened when the head of a brown puppy poked up over the side of the bag, and a kitten climbed up on top of the puppy to see.

"You can hold them, if you like," Frankenstein told him. "I brought the dogs to guard," you and, "the house while I'm away, and the cats so that at least _some_ animal won't be secretly rooting for the harvest mice to succeed in infesting my kitchen." Cats were very protective of human dwellings because they saw humans as large kittens, and vermin like rats would often try to attack kittens and kill them before they became a threat.

Raizel stepped forward and Frankenstein held the bag open for him, watching him look down at the small animals. The noble reached in and took the black puppy and the kitten that hadn't used their comrade as a ladder. It wasn't until he straightened that Frankenstein processed that he had just allowed a noble in his personal space, as though he was just another animal.

Well, he wasn't human, but he was still a person. People could have agendas of their own. People could betray you. Most of Frankenstein's familiars were predators, and they saw other species as food, or rivals, or to-be-eliminated, and there could be malice in it. It was a disappointment to find that humans and nobles didn't have a monopoly on cruelty. He could trust his familiars not to betray him because he could see into their hearts.

A noble as powerful as Raizel…

A noble that at this very moment was sitting down on the only seat in the room that was only slightly gnawed with a tired puppy and a hungry kitten on his lap. Oh dear, he'd fed them before he left the mainland.

The animals he bonded to him possessed unusual resilience and _could_ go without food longer than natural animals, but a growing child needed to eat. He hurried his pace, but still scanned the floor with his enhanced vision before putting the padded bag down next to Raizel. "Watch them while I heat up some milk," he told the noble, too distracted by the small thing's need echoing through their link to realize he'd just given an order to a noble.

"They're too young to be away from their mother," he said when he returned, frowning as he picked up the smaller one to feed it first. "I was planning to bring back a tom and a queen: they're both toms, but I couldn't just leave them there." The power he gave them had cleaned and brightened their dull, matted fur, at least.

Raizel's finger delicately slid down the other kitten's back, and was captured by the kitten's tiny paws and brought to its mouth. "He is also hungry."

Frankenstein only had so many hands… Ah. "Would you like me to show you how to feed them?" He had been planning to deposit them with the matriarch of his wolf pack, but if Raizel took a liking to them it would give Raizel some company and something to do other than stand there and watch far-too-mischievous and playful animals fight over him.

It was his own fault for preferring the smarter familiars – they got bored and made their own entertainment in his absence. This wasn't just the first time leaving Raizel unsupervised, it was the first time leaving this new batch of familiars unsupervised. He should have anticipated this and done something to head it off.

He should apologize even if this was a noble, because Raizel had been nothing but kind and accommodating and didn't deserve to have that level of noise inflicted on him, but he was busy explaining the care of young animals to Raizel.

Frankenstein could punish the ravens by confiscating half the stash of jewelry they'd pilfered _later_. Making inquiries as to who exactly it belonged to would give him an excuse to visit the clan manors. Once he removed the tarnish, patina and other types of corrosion, of course. He wouldn't be surprised if some of it dated back to when the nobles first settled Lukedonia. He'd have to make sketches and take careful notes during the cleaning.

* * *

"I've brought the tea, 'Master,'" he said with a smile, setting the other saucers in front of Raizel's guests.

This time, there weren't any clan leaders present to provoke with his obviously-false deference, but it wouldn't hurt to stay in character for the sake of staying in practice, he thought as he poured cream into the saucers in front of Raizel's guests.

Raizel conveyed his thanks with a nod, then looked at the orange tabby as she lashed her tail. At this range, Frankenstein could feel short-distance psychic communication. When it was the clan leaders, Frankenstein should have been happy to see that Raizel was engaged in conversation instead of staring out the window, but for one thing they were clan leaders, and for another, Raizel usually shut down in their presence, clearly wishing he was somewhere else. Raizel clearly had a much better time entertaining the cats than he did dealing with Urokai finding something to complain about.

Last time it was how _dare_ those wolves be so noisy, disturbing poor Cadis Etrama di Raizel with their howling at night! Why didn't Frankenstein keep them under control? When most of them were half-grown. Let the children play. Frankenstein shook his head. _Honestly_.

"Excuse me," Raizel said when there was a tap at the window, getting up to let the raven in.

"You can leave your window open," Frankenstein reminded him.

He'd expected Raizel to say that he did not mind opening it because keeping it shut when no one was going in or out made less of a mess for Frankenstein, but instead the noble was staring at the raven.

It landed on the windowsill and deposited the thing in its beak – Frankenstein saw a flash of red – into Raizel's hands.

He leaned forward to see a red crystal of some sort, lit with a soft inner glow. An instant later it was hidden from his sight. By Raizel's clenched fists.

Raizel leapt up onto the windowsill and stood there. "Frankenstein."

"Yes?" Frankenstein stared up at him, bemused. What on earth would make the usually quiet noble do something so dramatic?

"If I do not return, tell the Lord that having you here granted his wish for me," Raizel said solemnly, and leaped away.

Frankenstein replaced him on the windowsill a second later, seeing Raizel's back recede quickly into the distance.

That was a surprising turn of speed for a noble who had never left this house, must less moved above a walk in Frankenstein's experience, but if he thought he could just bound off into the sunset after saying something like that he had another think coming.

That direction… unless he was leaving Lukedonia, he was heading towards either the Tradio or Landegre manors. "Where did you find that?" Frankenstein asked the raven, holding out his forearm for the bird.

' _Four of the white-and-black-haired flock were chasing one of the ones we don't trust."_ Clan Landegre's armsmen and the Central Order Knights. Ragar and Gejutel hadn't brought it up, and all involved were steering _very_ clear of this manor, but Frankenstein had a flock of spies and with their help it wasn't hard to find out that Ragar and that old man were conducting some very unsubtle housecleaning and didn't want him to know about it. _"He stopped to punch a hole in the ground and kick dirt over it, but I saw something shiny."_

"Good job," Frankenstein said. "It must be important for Raizel to react like that. He's normally so unflappable."

Blasted bird laughed at him. Ravens could understand quite a bit of human language. One of the downsides to enhancing them was that this could now include _puns_.

Something this exciting going on, and Raziel thought he could say something like _that_ and expect Frankenstein would stay put? "Hold on," he said, pulling the raven to his chest. Once he found Raizel, he could release it and it could call in the flock for him, if that was advisable.

* * *

He landed in the Tradio manor's courtyard to see Raizel facing off with a shriveled old man holding a larger red crystal.

Frankenstein was born into minor nobility, and his ancestors had practiced falconry centuries before the Huns made it fashionable. With his powers he didn't need that training to hunt with the aid of birds of prey, but it certainly didn't hurt, he thought, folding his arms and smirking at the sight of a clan leader standing there gaping as his jewel disappeared among the tree branches.

He was significantly less amused when Tradio summoned blood roots to attack his bird, and he sent a wave of dark lightning from his hand to intercept them and give that damn noble a taste of what awaited him when Frankenstein summoned Dark Spear.

Raizel raised his hand and a wall of red rose up out of the ground around them, and Frankenstein braced himself against that power. First Raizel rushing somewhere, and now he was fighting? The old man fell to his knees, reaching desperately in the direction the bird had fled.

"Lagus Tradio." The noble who let a human and his animals walk all over him stood there with solemn eyes and pronounced a sentence of death as wings of blood flared out around him.

The bloodsoaked air surrounding them stilled then, and Frankenstein saw frightened faces appear in windows as a purple-haired girl who didn't look more than eight ran forward to kneel trembling at Raizel's feet and greet him as Ragar and Gejutel had the night Frankenstein first met Raizel.

Looking down at her solemnly, Raizel opened his mouth to respond to her, then closed it again when a lightning bolt hit the ground behind Frankenstein. A white cloud billowed outwards from where it hit, and when it cleared Frankenstein saw a man with long, pale blond hair standing there wearing noble black. He did _not_ look happy, Frankenstein thought as the noble looked past him and Raizel, eyes narrowing as they focused on the Tradio manor, but then the little girl cried out, "Lord!" and scrambled forward to kneel before him and the man instantly hid that anger and disgust and forced a smile onto his face for the sake of the trembling child.

Lord? Frankenstein straightened, looked over his clothing, thanked goodness it was intact and summoned the raven. If official proceedings were about to begin, it would be good to have the evidence in case Raizel got in trouble for this. Whatever this was.

Raizel was looking around with tired eyes. Frankenstein gestured to get his attention – over _here_. Raizel obeyed with an expression of gratitude. For Raizel, that expression displayed a little too much gratitude, and Frankenstein certainly _hoped_ he wasn't surprised that Frankenstein didn't back away when he came close. "It is a blood stone," he said quietly, as the Lord filled up the silence with far too many words for Frankenstein's taste. Perhaps he'd grown too used to that manor, and the company of prisoners and animals before it. Regardless of the noise level, at least the girl seemed to be doing a little better.

Gejutel landed in the clearing, Ragar not a second behind him. Both of them hurried not to the Lord's side, but Raizel's.

"What is…?" Gejutel started to ask Frankenstein, but then he took a step back in horror. "That can't be!"

Frankenstein looked at Ragar, in case he knew what all the fuss was about the crystal Frankenstein had taken from his raven. He didn't seem to know any more than Frankenstein, which was only to be expected. This was Ragar, so _really_. What had Frankenstein been expecting?

"What is it doing here?" Gejutel demanded, and then realized who he was talking to. "Forgive me, Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel."

Raizel looked at Frankenstein.

"I can't believe it! Lagus said you conducted inhuman experiments, but to do something like that to your fellow humans?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about. I don't know what this is, other than Lagus had it and Raizel seemed to think it was serious."

"…Lagus?"

Now that Gejutel wasn't looming over him like he thought he or any noble had the right to condemn Frankenstein, "What was that about my fellow humans?"

"Wouldn't we all like to know," said a cheerful voice behind Frankenstein. He turned to see the Lord carrying the purple-haired girl in his arms. "I'm going to take poor Claudia to the castle and give her to Raskreia. Gejutel, Ragar, I want all the clan leaders summoned to appear in the throne room before nightfall."

"Yes, Lord," both of them said, bowing.

Ragar vanished, but Gejutel hesitated. "Lord, is Lagus…"

"Lagus has been sentenced to forced eternal sleep," Raizel was the one to say.

Frankenstein knew that Gejutel was older than human civilization, but for a long moment he looked it. "I see." Gejutel forced himself to smile reassuringly at Raizel, like the Lord had at that child, but his didn't quite reach his eyes.

The Lord sighed. "I'm certain I gave an order, I distinctly felt my lips move," he remarked.

Gejutel bowed and turned to go.

Then Raizel coughed.

"What's wrong?" Frankenstein demanded, giving the bird a bit of help up into the air so he had a hand free to grasp Raizel's shoulder. "Did he poison you before I got here?"

Raizel shook his head, and raised his hand to wipe blood away from his mouth. "It is fine, Frankenstein."

"I'm sure a genius who made himself strong enough to escape two clan leaders doesn't need me to tell you he's lying, but I need to get Claudia settled and see if I can make any of the others slip up and confess," said the Lord. "Please make sure he gets home alright: poor Raizel has no sense of direction."

Raizel's embarrassed expression was slight, but there.

Another clap of thunder and the Lord vanished as well as the child, leaving them standing in front of the manor. At least he couldn't see the eyes in the windows anymore: had they taken cover? "Why don't we head home?" he suggested, because despite his dislike of doing what a noble told him to do, he wanted to get Raizel away from this place that made him sick and all those eyes that might return to stare at him.

The raven landed on Raizel's shoulder and tugged at his earring – not trying to rip it out, just to get his attention, make the noble move along instead of just standing there like this was his window. Except here, the outside world was staring at him.

When there still was no response, Frankenstein took Raizel's arm and pulled him gently away from this place.

He expected Raizel to at least frown in protest on behalf of his dignity, but Raizel looked at the expression on Frankenstein's face and came away with him, quite tamely.

* * *

 _One of the archaic names for a group of ravens is 'a conspiracy of ravens.'_

 _Papa Lord is just, 'Yes, free little sister for Raskreia! Raizel might have refused to be her family, but I have other ways of getting what I want, muahahaha~'_


	4. Chapter 4

_Apologies for taking so long to post stuff, I've needed to do some editing/rewiring on the Bonded chapter and haven't been feeling well enough. Have this?_

 _Familiar (working title 'Pets') was going to be three chapters, but I was convinced otherwise._

* * *

Frankenstein had set up guest bedrooms _because_ this wasn't his house. If Raizel decided to allow someone else to stay, either temporarily or just moving in for several years like Frankenstein, Frankenstein couldn't stop him. That didn't mean Frankenstein was going to allow any (other) freeloaders to just pick a room. He'd set up these rooms well away from where he and his animals lived, not to mention _his_ kitchen.

…and the entrance to his lab.

The large bay windows were there so his familiars would have an easy time spying on any 'guests.'

He complimented himself on his foresight as he motioned for Raizel to sit forward a little more so Frankenstein could position another pillow behind him. Raizel might be less obliging if the room didn't have a window for him to stare out of. Not to mention an easy way for the animals to enter the room. This room had multiple windows, in fact: Raizel might even consider it a treat.

Hmm. When he made tea or cookies, Raizel would stay seated in a chair until he finished eating them – that would be a way to keep him in this bed. Frankenstein should also set up a simple device to allow Raizel to open and close the windows without leaving the bed.

Raizel watched him, and Frankenstein could see that he was mystified behind his usual reserve as he scratched behind the brown dog's ears.

Frankenstein smiled at him and told him to, "There, now lie back and get comfortable; I'll bring you some tea." _If_ you are good.

The problem: Raizel was sick. It was nothing Frankenstein had ever seen in a noble before, and he had no medicines that were effective on nobles. They tended to heal on their own, he'd never had reason or desire to treat one before, but Raizel was his host and Frankenstein felt vaguely responsible for him. The earring Raizel had asked for was helping decrease the amount of energy leaking from Raizel, so that was one option to examine.

There were poisons that could work on them – he would have to find some way to shake down Clan Tradio for their secrets, although like Ragar who knew how much they actually _understood_ about their abilities – meaning that _something_ could affect their systems, and Dark Spear could also exert a negative effect. The question was how to create a positive, healing effect on whatever had damaged Raizel's body?

Nobles were capable of entering a healing sleep, just like how sleep was the state in which the human body did most of its healing. There was one other factor in recovery that humans and nobles shared: a mind.

Even if most nobles had much less of one.

Ensuring that a human was comfortable, happy and confident that they would recover had great positive effects. If nobles slept to recover, then they would associate bed rest with recovery. Raizel enjoyed his windows, and the company of the animals also brought smiles to his lips.

And _everyone_ knew that Frankenstein was the greatest medical genius. If he made it clear that he was taking steps to ensure Raizel's recovery, he was sure the noble had the sense not to doubt his word.

By the time there was a knock on the door, a fire in the fireplace and the sunlight streaming in through the windows had made Raizel's room quite warm – slightly warmer than Frankenstein would wish for a human patient, but nobles did not sweat or grow dehydrated – and Raizel had been induced to drink a herbal tea by the simple expedient of adding several spoonfuls of honey. It wasn't something he had prepared for Raizel before, and if Raizel assumed it had some healing properties for nobles? Since that theory itself would be beneficial, he wouldn't be _wrong_.

The heat in the room meant Frankenstein needed to keep the animals' bowls topped off with cold water, although several of them were napping on top of Raizel's legs, which helped both their body temperatures and keeping the noble pinned in place. Raizel felt that disturbing an animal by moving out from under them would be rude, and in the noble's existence there really wasn't anything so urgent that he couldn't wait until they left.

Frankenstein went to answer the front door while carrying a full water pitcher, and found himself confronted by red and blonde. And not even useful blonde, although he couldn't blame Ragar for being given an assignment by his liege lord.

The instant Ragar showed his face, Frankenstein had a list of herbs and fruits to send him after. New tastes would make Raizel happy and testing the effects of different medicines on him wouldn't _hurt_.

"How is Sir Raizel?" Edian asked.

"What are you doing to him?" Urokai demanded, glaring at the water pitcher as though it contained some exotic poison.

"Treating his condition. I _am_ a doctor," Frankenstein reminded them. It had taken a bit of effort to find a properly elegant way to say 'doctor' in Lukedonian.

"I demand that you let us see him," Edian said.

"Certainly," Frankenstein told them, but when Urokai started forward he didn't move out of the doorway. " _Provided_ you don't raise your voices, discuss upsetting subjects or do anything else that might disturb him or make him unhappy. Sir Raizel's spirit is in turmoil," _that_ wasn't hard to sense _,_ "and he needs rest and calm to regain his equilibrium before there's any further damage. Sir Raizel is a gentle soul: if you go barging in there reminding him of what happened this afternoon by asking questions you'll upset him."

"What happened?" Edian was the one to ask, sticking her arm out to the side before Urokai could barge forward.

Ugh, what was Urokai doing here without his minder? At least Edian was making herself somewhat useful and doing something to substitute for Zarga.

"I don't have the slightest idea. I've been too busy bringing Sir Raizel home and getting him settled to ask questions. He went to the Tradio manor because of some red stone, I followed him because I was concerned, and by the time I got there the Clan Leader of Clan Tradio was attacking Sir Raizel and my host was forced to defend himself. The battle wounded him," even if not physically – an internal injury or an injury to the psyche? Psychosomatic wounds could be very harmful to humans, and a noble's mind and power affected their body more directly. "And as a doctor my first priority had to be making sure that Sir Raizel will be alright."

"Will he be alright?" the blonde clan leader asked with unusual focus for a noble, leaning forward instead of trying to act aloof, as though they weren't prying.

"I don't know," Frankenstein told her. "I assume you can sense that he's radiating more power than usual?" It worried Frankenstein: the right word might be _bleeding_ power. "I won't be able to get a clear picture of how this affected him until his spirit has at least regained its equilibrium. Right now he's terribly upset by what happened, and that itself can wound the spirit. He needs calm and comfort. He's always happy to see you," Frankenstein said because flattery would get you everywhere, "and that will have a beneficial effect, but the two of you must maintain your composure and not do anything that might make him unhappy."

"How dare you! We'd never do anything to make Sir Raizel unhappy!"

Frankenstein gave him a stern look. "So then you were _not_ planning on asking Sir Raizel what happened and reminding him of being attacked by someone he considered a friend?"

Urokai looked taken aback for once.

"You can inquire after his well-being, and I'd appreciate it if you asked whether or not he's comfortable." He sighed for effect. "I've set up a sickroom and done my best to make him comfortable there, but Sir Raizel is so courteous I'm worried he might not tell me if there's something that isn't good enough." Well, true, but he watched them to see how they reacted to a lesser being showing vulnerability/need of help.

In Urokai's case, he saw him seize hold of the words, but it was more about he _knew_ that Frankenstein wasn't taking proper care of Raizel instead of that the clan leader suspected he was being manipulated. "You've infested it with those animals, haven't you?" he accused.

Ugh, for goodness' sake, "The animals are there to generate a calm, affectionate emotional atmosphere and promote Sir Raizel's healing." No, better _not_ mention that Frankenstein was worried about Dark Spear's aura of hatred and hostility and he wanted enough of his familiars in there to keep it from bothering Raizel. "Sir Raizel is an extremely sensitive soul, and suspicion and hostility wound his spirit at the _best_ of times. Right now, he's in a delicate condition, and it's extremely important to take whatever precautions we can to be sure he doesn't suffer additional harm. Upsetting him could set back his recovery and put him in danger of further complications."

He was a little worried that he might be completely wrong about something or other, and might say the wrong thing and reveal his ignorance, but from Edian's nod he needn't have worried. Judging from Ragar and Gejutel, nobles knew practically nothing about their equivalent of biology. It rarely malfunctioned, so they didn't _need_ to know. Not like vulnerable humanity.

A pity he couldn't dazzle them with jargon the Lukedonian language didn't _have_.

"And what would _you_ know about helping people?" Urokai glared at him.

"I am a doctor. Keeping humans from dying is what I _do_. It's not my fault that far too often the only way to save human lives is to kill your criminals. I've treated plenty of people for severe wounds to the soul caused by noble power thanks to you nobles unleashing mutants on us."

Edian stared at him. "You think you can save Sir Raizel?"

'Save?' "I don't know yet."

"What do you mean you don't know?"

"As I said, the first priority has to be stabilizing Sir Raizel. When someone suffers a serious injury, it's possible for the," in this case, "energy they lose because of the wound to finish them off if the wound isn't sealed over. Or for them to go into shock, at which point they may just drop dead. Or for the injury to weaken them enough for something that is no threat to them under normal circumstances to be a deadly danger. Once the immediate danger is past, then I can look into a more permanent solution." Because it sounded like he was going to need one. Damn, he couldn't reveal too much ignorance to these nobles, or they might try to drive him away from Raizel's bedside, but… well, it was Edian and Urokai, he doubted they had any useful information for him. Gejutel was more likely to have something useful to contribute.

Both of them had paled, looking at him with terrified eyes. Nobles: was this really complete news to them?

"Now," he said, "I need to bring water to the animals so they stay comfortable and that will help Sir Raizel stay comfortable." He was about to tell them to follow him and stay calm, but right, he'd just done his best to put the fear of mortality into them. "I don't think that Sir Raizel is in any immediate danger," he reassured them. "I'm just doing everything I can to be sure because I haven't treated a noble for this kind of injury before. As long as the two of you don't upset him or project any negative emotions like anger," Urokai, "receiving visitors should be good for him. Follow me, please: I set up another room for his recovery."

Urokai recovered enough to mutter, "If you do anything to him while he's weak…" as they walked through the halls.

Frankenstein didn't dignify that with a response.

He paused, about to take hold of the doorhandle. "Don't upset the animals," he warned them. "You'll upset Sir Raizel." That should follow from what he'd said, but nobles were idiots.

Putting a smile on his face instead of waiting for a response, he opened the door. "You have visitors," he told Raizel.

It looked as though Raizel had followed his order to get comfortable: he was snuggled into the pillows, although his innate effortless elegance still made him look regal as he stroked one of the wolves, the brown puppy still curled up on his lap.

"Sir Raizel!" Urokai rushed forward.

Raising his voice. Of _course_ he did.

"Are you alright?" the clan leader demanded. "Did the human do anything to you?"

"I am fine, Urokai. But I appreciate your concern."

Edian hung back instead of pressing against the side of the bed, looming over Raizel, but then she had to open her mouth. "Gejutel said there was a blood stone."

"What did I _just say_?" Frankenstein sighed, bending down to fill another water bowl. Judging from Raizel's extreme reaction, not to mention Gejutel's, those stones were a very serious matter.

His eyebrows rose when Edian almost flinched. Well, that answered that question. But why was _Edian_ feeling guilty about this? She was (metaphorically, _thankfully_ ), the less irritating offspring of Ragar and Urokai – Ragar's lack of intelligence, Urokai's defensiveness and inability to grasp that he had a crush on Raizel and deal with it like an adult instead of getting jealous that Raizel had other friends.

Although it would be foolish to trust any noble.

Some of him balked at that thought.

Well, there was Ragar, and Gejutel was a stupidly honorable old man too stuck in his ways for treachery. Unless he was simply very good at pretending.

The real issue was Raizel.

Frankenstein left before Edian and Urokai could do anything else idiotic in his hearing and went to the kitchen to cook with a vengeance.

* * *

After those two finally left, Frankenstein brought Raizel more tea and some cookies he'd baked while he was waiting. Looking over the noble and trying to brainstorm, he said, mainly to himself, "I wonder if you might want a bath…" They could be very relaxing. Even if nobles normally let their powers handle their hygiene, Raizel was weakened right now. He probably shouldn't be using his power, and it wasn't impossible that he might be vulnerable to infection if he couldn't remove the disease from his body.

One of the wolves started to lick Raizel's cheek.

Frankenstein _shuddered_. He knew that some of his familiars used… _that_ method to clean themselves, but _not in front of him, please_. He was more than happy to bathe them if they needed it, and they were generally quite happy to let him clean them, when he could warn them what was going to happen and explain the concept.

 _Licking_ his patient, when Raizel had bled from the mouth… He had to shake himself as though he was the canine, when the animal instantly sat back, contrite. "It's alright," he made an effort to reassure her, taking deep breaths. "You were just trying to help."

The wet shine on Raizel's cheek was already gone, but after finding out about the small creatures that caused plague and how they could be found in saliva, how they could enter the body through open wounds? Frankenstein's skin wasn't going to stop crawling until he scrubbed down the noble, whether Raizel liked it or not.

"Follow me," he said, the animals pouring off the bed as Frankenstein threw back the heavy (for an unenhanced human) comforter. Raizel might be able to handle teacups as fine as porcelain (there weren't any porcelain deposits on Lukedonia as far as Frankenstein could tell, so he'd been forced to make do), but when Raizel just stood around all day he might be unpracticed in situations where he needed to exert force instead of restrain it.

* * *

When Raizel removed the dressing gown to reveal he had perfect skin, a lithe body that the Greeks would have begged to use for a model etc. etc., it wasn't anything Frankenstein hadn't seen before.

He _was_ a doctor, and while the Central Order Knights were forbidden from having _faces_ of bewitching beauty while in the human world, their bodies were covered by their uniforms (unless they decided to have some fun or Frankenstein stripped them for the examination) and they were allowed to indulge their vanity in inhuman perfection there.

Since Frankenstein didn't perform tests on the innocent knights, he'd started to associate too-perfect male bodies with the disgusting criminals who unleashed mutants. Although at least Raizel's form was relatively modest, lithe instead of arrogantly displaying his strength.

Instead of letting the robe Frankenstein gave him fall to the wet stone floor, Raizel looked around to see what he could do with the dressing gown. Frankenstein took it from him and went to put it in the changing room.

Ragar had showed Frankenstein the baths eight years ago after Frankenstein tried to use how bloody he'd gotten during a spar to guilt-trip Ragar into hauling buckets and refilling the water tower. The nobles used them infrequently by Frankenstein's standards – they were a species that considered once every ten years excessively frequent for anything, let alone something nobles technically didn't require. So he usually had the baths to himself, not that he would count on that.

He put up the folding screen he'd stored in one of the changing rooms here between the rest of the room and the area of the baths he intended to use. He had no intention of letting a noble observe his naked body, even if it would tell them absolutely nothing about his enhancements other than that he was capable of preventing scarring.

Even though Frankenstein could keep himself from giving off body odor (a noble's power that was _very_ useful when his enemies pursued him with hounds of their own), most humans could not, and instead used soaps and fragrances that ideally could merge with and compliment their natural scents. When he emerged into human society, he would stand out if he did _not_ wear some type of cologne.

Soap-making was a pleasant enough chore, something that reminded him of more innocent days, and he frequently changed which scents he used so that he didn't develop the habit of using a certain scent that might become associated with him and hint at his presence. For Raizel, he'd selected a bar of one of the sweeter scents, attar of roses.

Pedestrian, if expensive because of the labor involved in its creation for those who weren't him, but he seriously doubted Raizel had ever seen soap before in his life. The way the noble took the bar when Frankenstein handed it out to him and looked at it… Frankenstein's eyes widened. "No," he said quickly. "Don't eat it!"

Raizel's hand stopped almost to his mouth and blinked at him.

Right, what was the noble supposed to think when Frankenstein handed him something that smelled sweet? "It's soap," he told Raizel. "It's used for cleaning – don't eat it." He'd meant to supervise Raizel's bathing, but if the noble really had no idea how to wash himself Frankenstein would have to take care of it today. He could teach Raizel how to clean himself the human way, but that would take too long. He'd planned to spend some time here, but he wanted Raizel relaxing, not overtaxing a brain that needed hours to pick out what to wear.

For now, he could just rub Raizel down with the soap and some cloths. These baths might be hot springs instead of Roman-style, but it would be easy to make a strigil and bring some scented oils. He could test the oils on the inside of his cheek, to be on the safe side. Sometimes his animals had reactions humans didn't, but if something wasn't safe for an enhanced human he certainly wasn't inflicting it on a helpless animal.

His hands tightened, gripping the cloth he was rubbing over Raizel's skin. Just like rubbing down a horse, except for the lack of feedback. Frankenstein hadn't risked riding a horse that wasn't his familiar in centuries. What if he was attacked and had to make some sudden movement? An ordinary horse couldn't recover if the chaos of a battle resulted in a broken leg or some other severe injury.

What if his host couldn't…

…Raizel was a _noble_ , for goodness' sake. Despite what he'd picked up from Urokai and Edian, he had to be able to recover! It wasn't as those two knew what they were talking about when it came to nobles and their abilities!

He felt the shift in Raizel's shoulders, the slight slump, and he knew that movement, the sadness that there weren't any more pettings forthcoming from centuries of familiars. Habit made him start rubbing Raizel's back again apologetically.

He used to be a doctor, and now he found himself taking care of animals far too often and people never… except Raizel was a person, not an animal. His first _real_ patient in… he'd rather not depress himself by doing the math. How long it had been since he could operate on someone without the risk the traitors to humanity would take them and vivisect them?

Raizel's back was straight despite the pressure Frankenstein applied, but when he rubbed the noble's neck to get under that hair his head leaned forward, stretching out the neck, separating out the bones of the spine.

Hah, so he was enjoying it. Not that Raizel was trying to hide his enjoyment, despite the lack of approving noises and other feedback. Nobles weren't very in touch with their bodies. He doubted Raizel had ever made those sounds…

And then he felt more than heard a small, "Mmm…" in that throat. An almost confused sound, like the, "Hmm," that followed it.

"Do you like it?" Frankenstein prompted helpfully.

Raizel nodded, rubbing his neck against the nubbed cloth, which probably didn't help his ability to think. "Yes," he said belatedly.

"You nobles often seem surprised by the fact you have bodies." He'd seen a similar overwhelmed, not sure what sort of noise to make phenomenon in his test subjects before their throats worked out that the proper response was a _scream_.

It made him wonder if nobles possessed human instincts – why else would they be so suppressed?

Raizel moved his neck again, rubbing it against the cloth almost experimentally. When he did it again, Frankenstein leaned around his side to watch Raizel's face. His eyes were closed, focused on the sensation, and this time instead of lowering again when the motion was complete, his shoulders remained pushed up hopefully.

Frankenstein continued the motion for him, sliding the cloth down Raizel's spine. It drew another, "Mmm," from the noble.

"There." Frankenstein smirked. "That's more like it."

Was the noble… no, it wasn't just the heat and the steam. Raizel was blushing. "My apologies for being noisy," the noble said, trying to maintain his dignity, but there was a slight pause in the words when pressing down, Frankenstein ran the cloth back up Raizel's spine.

"Feedback is appreciated," he said when that earned him another mmm.

He wondered if he could play the noble like a lute. It was habit to find out how his familiars liked to be petted – it helped them stay happy and healthy.

…Could he make a noble a familiar?

His hands stilled on Raizel's back. That would give him valuable information on Raizel's condition. Allow him to be certain the noble wouldn't betray him. He would be able to share his healing powers with Raizel, the way those who brought contracts obtained a portion of the criminals' power.

For a human to bind a noble to them, instead of the other way around… With an animal, he would just try it and see what happened, but Raizel was a person, even if he was a noble, and Frankenstein only experimented on the criminals.

"Would you mind if I took a blood sample when we get home?" he asked Raizel. "I'd like to see if it's possible to create the same type of bond with you that I have with my familiars. Only if you're willing to participate in the experiment, of course."

He felt the shock in Raizel's back. Then silence, long enough to worry him. He reminded himself of how long it took his host to contemplate even the simplest of things.

Finally Raizel drew himself up straight but didn't turn around to face Frankenstein before answering, "I consent."

He was able to coax Raizel to bend again, but he didn't grow as relaxed as he was before Frankenstein sprung the question on him. Was Raizel nervous?

…Or was it Frankenstein who wasn't taking this seriously enough? He'd conducted his first trials with short-lived species before moving on to species with longer lifespans. Some of his parrots should have lived longer than an ordinary human even without the power they'd gained as familiars.

They understood too much about his situation, took too many risks for his sake…

Raizel would live quite a long time, if his illness wasn't fatal. If nothing happened to him because of Frankenstein's enemies or whatever enemies he had made by killing a clan leader.

If he still had some criminals in the labs, he could experiment with them and kill them immediately after the outcome of the experiment was known.

He opened his mouth to say nevermind, tell Raizel it was a silly idea and he shouldn't worry about it, but was that nervousness or hope in the noble's body language? Frankenstein's familiars were Raizel's friends: did he feel left out, because he was the only one in the manor who wasn't one of them? He didn't want to make Raizel feel rejected, see him stoically conceal his disappointment.

Raizel was his host, and a patient, and the animals certainly saw him as one of the family. Frankenstein didn't want to make him sad. A bond could be attenuated by distance if need be, although it would be inconvenient to leave Raizel's house and he certainly didn't want to leave Lukedonia when he was still investigating the clan leaders.

Why oh why had he spoken so casually about experimenting on a sick person? But the reasons it might help more than hurt Raizel's recovery still applied…

Maybe he could get a blood sample from Ragar. Well, he could certainly get a blood sample from Ragar, the noble certainly bled enough during their sparring sessions, but get his consent for the test. He was young and in good health, and tolerable enough. If the familiar bond didn't take on a noble, much less a powerful one, then he could let Raizel down gently.

If it _did_ take, that would leave him with two noble familiars, and while Ragar was tolerable, useful and too dim to spy on Frankenstein's work, _nobles_. Yes, the noble criminals might sell themselves to as many humans, or buy the souls of as many humans, as Frankenstein took animal familiars, but…

It came to Frankenstein that he was overthinking this, or putting far more thought into it than the nobles did, but he was certainly better than those criminals. He suppressed a sigh, cleaning behind Raizel's ears and scratching a little, to praise him for behaving so well during the bath. At least he had all the time he needed to decide how to go about this: Raizel considered two months an amazingly quick time for a project to go from discussion to fruition.

If Raizel was an animal, taking him as a familiar or not wouldn't be a question. He was neat, clean, polite, helpful, reasonably intelligent and well-behaved. He would certainly be an asset in an attack if he wasn't ill.

Was it really the awareness that this would be a long-term relationship, something that wouldn't just go away if it didn't work out, that was making him hesitate, or was it Raziel's similarity to a human? Frankenstein would _never_ turn a fellow _human_ into a familiar. He'd done his best to keep mind control out of these bonds, but he'd gotten the capability from studying how the criminals turned humans into servants and mutants. There was no risk of that with Raizel, when he was a noble.

Looking at Raizel's bare frame, his distracted mind suddenly imagined a too-vivid scene. He could almost feel himself leaning forward, fastening his lips to the side of that pale neck and biting, as casually as his familiars nipped at each other. Taking the blood into his mouth and licking the wound clean as Raizel shuddered in his arms, from surprise more than pain, and leaned back into his grasp instead of trying to escape it. Beautiful and powerful and gentle and _his._ His quiet, curious exotic creature.

He wished there was enough revulsion at the thought of acting like one of those monsters to dampen the surge of desire that ran through him. He had enough control over his body thanks to his enhancements that he could forestall the physical reaction, but he couldn't help being conscious of the warmth of Raizel's body, the smooth weight of his hair as he worked the mixture he used to keep his familiars' fur clean and healthy into it.

…How long had it been since he'd touched any living creature that wasn't an enemy or a familiar? How long since he'd shared his home with any being even similar to a human in form?

That explained why he felt such a sense of ownership towards Raizel, it didn't explain the attraction… For heaven's sake of _course_ there was attraction. Noble. Raizel was gorgeous and Frankenstein had eyes. Eyes that had long been deprived of any naked male form that wasn't firmly off-limits. Due to good taste, if nothing else. Perhaps he should take advantage of Ragar's evident attraction to take the edge off before he did anything permanent.

Frankenstein told himself that, and yet he knew that he would try to form the familiar bond soon after they returned home. That he would be disappointed if it didn't work. He might even devote some of his research time to the problem. It would be _vexing_ if Raizel could keep running off and getting into fights – what if Frankenstein didn't see him go next time?

He pictured the shy shut-in trying to find his way home, all by himself and coughing up blood.

…Yes, he would go with his original inclination and make Raizel his familiar as soon as they returned to the manor. Clearly he'd had the right idea from the beginning.


	5. Chapter 5

_I'm sorry - I have been writing, but not getting things to the point of posting. I have quite a few fics where there's thousands of words written but substantial amounts of work I need to do before I can publish them. I'm going to try to knock the next chapter of Bonded into shape next._

* * *

He carefully sterilized the needle, aware that Raizel was sitting up in bed, watching as he had the first time Frankenstein prepared tea in his room. That was why Frankenstein was doing this here – it wasn't so Raizel could be reassured that this was safe, because what would Raizel know about sterilization or the hazards of puncture wounds for humans? Raizel didn't like to stare (perhaps it felt like prying to him?) but the anticipation of the result made him watch, and Frankenstein wanted to make Raizel exercise his curiosity.

Even if Raizel was a noble, and Frankenstein shouldn't be encouraging him or Ragar to think. Then again, if this was successful, then Raizel would be his and Frankenstein wouldn't have to worry about Raizel developing curiosity about Frankenstein's research. He might even want to try to educate Raizel as a case study.

It was interesting and perhaps heartening that Raizel's attitude was one of dignity barely covering anticipation, even though the ability Frankenstein would use to do this was a mimic of one nobles used to enslave humans. Did Raizel really trust him that much? Or was it that nobles trusted each other by default, and failed to watch each other for signs that they were abusing their power, as he'd pointed out to Gejutel and Ragar?

The thought made him shake his head in disapproval. If it was naiveté, then it was all for the better that he was making Raizel a familiar. With that much power, he would be a prime target for manipulators who wanted to use him. Frankenstein might intend to keep Raizel, but he wouldn't take advantage of him. It was his goal to prove that humans were strong, so the criminals should think twice before preying on them. If he needed to make use of a noble's power, it would undermine what he was trying to accomplish in Lukedonia.

Nobles might claim to be the protectors of humans, but if a human took better care of a noble than they did of humanity? The thought made him smirk as he said, "Reach out your arm."

He carefully rolled back Raizel's sleeve. The noble's brow furrowed at the sight of his clothing in disarray. "Bear with it for a moment," Frankenstein told him, patting his hand before tying a length of thin rope around Raizel's arm, and turning it over so that the wrist was facing up. Veins showed blue through skin that received direct sunlight once a decade at most.

Raizel was still watching closely as Frankenstein positioned the needle. "This will hurt a little," he warned him.

The noble nodded, undeterred, waiting for Frankenstein to go on. He grasped the wrist carefully and slid the needle home.

Raizel didn't flinch or cry out. Was that noble oddness? He wasn't used to pain, so there should have been some surprise.

At least, Frankenstein hoped Raizel had little experience with pain.

When the glass tube was full, Frankenstein carefully withdrew the needle and pressed sterile gauze over the wound, tying a ribbon around it to hold it in place. He untied the rope around Raizel's arm, and carefully replaced Raizel's shirt and jacket sleeves so they didn't disturb the small bandage. "There, all done," he told him.

Raizel frowned.

"Not the familiar bond, the blood drawing," Frankenstein said, seeing Raizel's confusion.

No time like the present, he told himself, but he couldn't deny that he was moving fast on this.

More than one part of him wanted it done _yesterday_. Raizel was sick and had no idea how to act when sick. He had _left the house_ and got in a fight with a clan leader. What if something happened to him?

And then there was the part that found Raizel beautiful. He knew that should be a reason not to create the familiar bond. What if he slipped and sent that desire to Raizel? Would he feel pressured as Frankenstein's host, or honestly, who knew what would happen when Raizel did not know how to manage with people? He might get any kind of idea into his head.

It wasn't as though Frankenstein thought it was a bad idea to create the bond, but emotion could compromise judgment. He should have sent Tesamu away much earlier, but he wanted to pass on his medical knowledge. Let _some_ of it spread and help humanity.

He was already pushing in the plunger just slightly, letting a drop of blood escape to lie on his palm. He'd washed his hands before he began, so it didn't bother him to lick up the blood almost casually. He'd done this dozens of times before. It shouldn't be any dif-

Frankenstein had made sure to remove all traces of mind control from this aspect of his abilities so he was incapable of creating mutants or controlling humans. The blood still let him create a connection, a conduit, and it was easy to persuade animals to do as he wished once he understood how their minds worked.

The use of Raizel's blood gave him a door into the noble's soul.

He hadn't expected it to feel so comfortable. Maybe it was because he was used to it by now, from bonds to dozens of familiars over the decades. He was used to the feel of another soul meaning affection and partnership, little things that would do their best for him, even if he couldn't rely on them when they were fleeting and fragile. Fragile. He could feel that Raizel was fragile. The power loose in this soul wasn't just power over blood, it was power that bled from him, and Frankenstein knew better than to bloodlet outside of specific circumstances that did not apply here. Raizel might have a great deal of power, but it wasn't overwhelming him the way noble power might a human soul. Draining noble power out of a mutant was a potential method of treatment, but using the blood-granted control over Raizel to drain his power would kill him faster.

…Frankenstein could use the familiar bond to drain Raizel's power, his very life, and Raizel was still willing to grant it to him?

Normally, it was Frankenstein's power that flowed along familiar bonds to his animals, the power flowing from greater to lesser. Frankenstein noticed that some of Raizel's power was flowing into him, but it should be fine. Frankenstein was the one with the blood, he was in control here. He wasn't going to end up Raizel's servant… well, alright, he did bring the noble tea and snacks, but Raizel carried around his familiars so it was only fair. It just made sense to pay Raizel back for his efforts – Frankenstein didn't want to end up indebted to a noble because his familiars took advantage.

His other familiars.

A piece of his soul gifted to Raizel, to create the bond and let him keep track of Raizel. Traces of Raizel's power within him, and if it weren't for the fact they were evidence of Raizel's illness Frankenstein might have thought it was just the way it should be. Only fair.

Raizel was his now. Raizel's house was his home now.

…Had he taken advantage of Raizel? The noble was sick; had he agreed out of gratitude to a caretaker?

"I consent," Raizel said again, knowing his fears.

Realizing that a noble had read his mind should have caused Frankenstein to take _immediate steps_. Instead, he sighed with relief, happy that Raizel had made the effort to reassure him. So it was alright, then: Raizel truly didn't mind that he belonged to Frankenstein now. It was only fair that in exchange, "I will take care of you," he promised, reaching out to smooth already-perfect hair.

"It is not necessary," Raizel said, but Frankenstein felt the noble's resignation even before he let out a little sigh. It wasn't necessary, but he didn't mind it, and didn't want or expect Frankenstein to stop, if it made him happy.

Frankenstein smiled at him. It would have been impossible not to. He looked around, feeling the impulse to pour Raizel tea, to feed him sweets, to spoil him. Sweets for the sweets, and now he could feel that delicate happiness as his own.

He was willing to let someone _eat in bed_. Not due to the necessity of getting food into a bedridden patient, but because… "Seeing you run off like that: it worried me." Run off and fight a clan leader and become ill from it. It made him realize that he wanted to keep Raizel. To have the quiet, once-lonely noble at his side.

Raizel was his now. It would be safe to let the noble near his neck: Frankenstein obtained _his_ blood first. Yet strangely, his desire for Raizel seemed to have subsided. Was it that he had wanted to _have_ Raizel, to take him, and now he had what he wanted? The black-haired noble was still exquisite, but when Frankenstein let himself think of sleeping with Raizel, instead of fantasies the thought that came to mind was just how difficult it would be for someone to get to him with Raizel there.

An owl, even a familiar _nothing_. Guarded by someone as powerful as Raizel, he could… He could curl up with him right now, couldn't he? In the sunlight streaming in through the windows, with his head on Raizel's lap and a dog curled up against his back. He could count on at least one of the cats to delicately pick their way over him, choosing the most interesting spot to sleep on top of him.

When was the last time he slept in a room with an exterior window? It wasn't safe, but he could have this. This place full of light and life.

And peace.

Speaking of peace, _Raizel_ getting into a fight was worrying. It couldn't be over a minor matter… He covered his mouth to stifle a yawn, then blinked down at his hand in surprise. Making an animal a familiar wasn't difficult, but it seemed he'd expended more energy than he thought, controlling Raizel's energies enough to create the bond. Then there was the energy he'd placed inside Raizel to anchor the bond and maintain the connection. He'd received that power from Raizel as well, but he wasn't going to make use of it. Raizel might need that energy.

He took off his jacket and hung it over the back of the chair he sat on, then remembered the blood vial. "One moment." He had to get it to the cold room so it would remain usable – studying Raizel's blood might yield some answers, and now Frankenstein was doubly responsible for curing him.

* * *

The wave of anxiety sweeping over his familiars roused him from where he lay with his newest familiar's fingers carding through his hair. Much better than being licked.

The brown dog had come to her feet, hind legs on Frankenstein's stomach, scenting the air. The ravens were all making their way to the nearest window to take to the air, and his owl was considering doing the same despite the glare of day.

One of his tomcats was pushing his face against Frankenstein's nose, wanting him to wake up and move.

Even Raizel was staring off into the distance, and not even looking through one of the windows, but behind them even though there was nothing but the headboard and wall to be seen there. To human eyes. "It is alright," he assured the animals, and Frankenstein sent the wave of calm that came from him through his bonds with the others. "You are safe here. His wrath will not trouble this place."

Wrath? Frankenstein was about to open his mouth to ask when he saw motion through the window.

The trees were shaking. A moment later the ground trembled under him as well.

Was it an earthquake or a battle? Raizel's words made battle more likely.

Frankenstein was glad he'd made sure that all of his possessions were secure. His battles with Ragar could shake the earth, but only when they made craters. No, this wasn't the shockwaves from a series of blows: the earth was vibrating.

Since Raizel still didn't seem _worried_ , only concerned, Frankenstein focused on noting as much as he could sense about the phenomenon.

 _Then_ the ground shook with the force of an explosion. Once, twice, three times, the shockwave battering the trees outside each time, and then the vibrations cut off and the world was still around them.

Was it really over? Frankenstein nudged the dog to get off him and stood, heading for the chair when he realized he was without his jacket. "I'll go see what…"

Smoke. His animals could smell a fire outside. His garden! "I'll be back soon," he told Raizel.

* * *

He could smell the smoke himself as soon as he stuck his head out the manor door, some of the ravens following him outside while the wolf paused in the doorway, sneezed and went back inside. Leaping out onto the roof, it was hard to miss the huge column of smoke, at least three miles across, surrounding the location of the Lord's castle. Two nobles were hovering in the air above it. Short red hair meant Mergas, and he saw her raising shields around part of the fire. Good, that would help smother it. The other had long red hair, longer than Urokai's, so Frankenstein would have recognized her as the Elenor clan leader even if she wasn't blasting the fire near her with jets of water materialized through her powers. A wave of her other hand, and more trees burst into flames. Setting a backfire? Unusually clever for nobles, but the Elenor clan did wield the power of flame, so they probably would have had to get _some_ elementary idea of how it worked to contain the brushfires set off while practicing. Further past them, he saw a large dark shape appear and reach down, sending trees flying into the air – so Loyard was also helping create an area where there was nothing to burn.

This was highly unusual, to see three clan leaders all working on the same thing, even if they didn't seem to be coordinating their efforts or the Elenor clan leader would have let the Loyard handle the firebreaks instead of setting backfires herself, so she could concentrate on summoning water. Ah, the Lord. This had to be by his order, the same as when two clan leaders came to capture a human.

Frankenstein leapt up into the air to get a clearer view. It did look like the castle was at the epicenter of the fire, which was drifting to the west as the windstorm died down and the prevailing winds took over. Hmm, he didn't see the Bluster clan leader. Personally, Frankenstein would have sent him instead of Loyard. That clan's powers would be better than even Mergas for firefighting duties, but it was the duty of the Mergas clan leader to defend the Lord and the Lord's castle, so of course she was out there. Then again, for all Frankenstein knew Krasis and any number of other clan leaders might be on the other side of that fire – even enhanced eyes couldn't see through all that smoke.

'His wrath,' Raizel had said. Whose?

It couldn't be the Lord's, could it? Edian and Urokai were allowed out to check up on Raizel, but they had left the manor because they needed to return to the castle. The rest of the clan leaders had been cloistered inside the castle since Tradio attacked Raizel – if three of them were being allowed out, was it just for firefighting duties or had something happened?

Well of _course_ something had happened – the earthquake was proof of that even without the fire. It was the kind of noisy affair nobles did their best to avoid. Unless they lost their tempers.

He considered barging over there and demanding answers, but Raizel's manor was fairly close to the Lord's castle. Frankenstein was probably lucky he hadn't wandered in there that night and ended up delivering himself to the Lord. If he distracted the clan leaders, there was a chance the fire might escape containment and destroy his garden.

"Keep an eye on it," he told the ravens as one perched on his shoulder. "You don't want your foraging grounds burnt, so don't harass the clan leaders. Too much."

He yawned again, frowning at himself. Had forging the bond to Raizel exhausted him this much? He should get inside before anyone had a chance to see evidence that he was tired. Hopefully the fire and whatever caused it would keep the clan leaders distracted until he had a chance to recuperate.

Maybe creating the bond now wasn't the best idea: if he and Raizel were both under the weather… But what was done was done, and he could gain a lot of data on Raizel's condition from this as soon as he was awake enough to analyze it.

* * *

"You seemed to know what was happening," he said to Raizel when he returned to the bedroom after checking that all the doors and windows were closed. He couldn't have that ash blowing inside.

Raizel sighed. "The wrath of the Lord. He has forced three of the clan leaders into eternal sleep."

Frankenstein's eyes widened. Three? He remembered the three times he'd felt the ground shake with a massive impact, not just that vibration. Striking down three clan leaders in such quick succession? Or, "Would they have offered themselves up for execution?" In which case it would be a matter of raising the executioner's axe for the killing blow, not fighting an opponent trying to survive.

Raizel's brow creased, uncertain, and he looked in the direction of the Lord's castle.

'Who was it?' Frankenstein wanted to ask, but Raizel already seemed distressed and he could extract the information from Ragar or Gejutel. Unless… No, they couldn't be among the criminals, so they wouldn't merit execution… Unless the Lord himself…

"The Lord is fond of humans," Raizel assured him. He didn't want Frankenstein to think badly of the Lord.

"Sorry," Frankenstein said. He might be used to thinking aloud and often sending the chatter to his familiars because it was better than talking to himself (that way lay madness), and it was good to have someone to listen, but nobles disliked it when others were talkative.

But his noble shook his head. "I do not mind it."

No, he _liked_ it when Frankenstein and the other familiars talked to him. It made him feel less alone, the way the petty thoughts of food and ball-chasing of his familiars helped Frankenstein endure the decades without human companionship. "It is good to not be alone, isn't it?" he asked, sitting down on the side of Raizel's bed. It wasn't quite a rhetorical question; he wanted to see Raizel's response.

It garnered him a slow, dignified nod, Raizel still not looking at him.

The dog stood up and padded closer to him so Frankenstein could scratch her behind the ears. "No, I haven't forgotten about you," he reassured her, smiling at the feel of that raw, elemental love and loyalty. Raizel's feelings were so different, but still real; a secret, incredulous delight. How would Raizel feel, when he finally believed that this was happening and that he deserved it? Frankenstein leaned forward with one knee on the bed, bracing himself with a hand to lean over Raizel and kiss him on the forehead in benediction. It might have been hard to believe a noble's feelings were this sweet, but he was used to the love of his familiars, and loving them in return.

The room grew darker, and he looked out to see the clouds of smoke spreading out above them, blocking the sunlight. He would need to light the lamps, and pull meat, hay and grain from the cold room. He didn't want any of his familiars hunting or foraging outside and breathing in that smoke.

Yet he was tempted to just stay here and console Raizel as the smoke blotted out his view of the sky. "I'll be back soon," he promised. "And my familiars will keep you company."

He felt the brush of Raizel's concern as the noble looked at him, hesitant to ask and imply that Frankenstein might not be able to handle whatever trouble he got into. "Don't worry," Frankenstein told him. "I will make sure everyone has what they need." Not just Raizel: of course he would understand that. "You're one of," mine, "them now, and they were happy to keep you company before." The familiars had plenty of practice making sure Frankenstein wasn't alone, they could look after Raizel as well for a few hours.

That earned him a nod, Raizel recognizing and approving of his responsibility.

Warmth suffused him, and he wanted to stroke Raizel's cheek, pet his hair, watch him lean into the touch. Feel Frankenstein's affection nourish that starved soul. But he could do that later. He would have plenty of time. Raizel's illness wasn't immediately life-threatening, and provided it was criminals who died, provided Frankenstein didn't need to avenge Ragar and Gejutel…

"I am glad you are well," he heard, and stiffened, feeling Ragar's energies emerge into detectable ranges at his back.

"I installed a doorbell," he said through gritted teeth.

"My apologies: the Kertia have been ordered to check on the welfare of all the nobles of Lukedonia," Ragar said, looking between Frankenstein and Raizel in puzzlement.

"I familiar-bound him," Frankenstein said with a smile that dared Ragar to object.

The clan leader looked at Raizel, who looked at Frankenstein and deliberately felt very unimpressed with Frankenstein trying to upset the young clan leader.

Color appeared on Ragar's cheeks an instant before he vanished. Frankenstein smirked viciously and felt Raizel's determination to ignore it when he did that, because Frankenstein liked knowing that he was affecting nobles and Raizel didn't want to encourage him.

* * *

Raizel's fingers stroked down his back, his knuckles pressed right where Frankenstein wanted them, in answer to his want. Frankenstein knew several of his familiars found another animal grooming them to be satisfying – interesting to find that humans shared that instinct, but then he had seen it in monkeys.

He should have familiar-bound Raizel _years_ ago.

Pity Ragar hadn't come in a little later and seen this. Well, Frankenstein still had Edian and Urokai's reactions to look forward to. Unless either of them had been forced into eternal sleep. Gejutel had to be fine, or Ragar would have been visibly distressed even if he _was_ a noble, surely. Gejutel was his father figure.

There was a knock on the (open) door to the hallway. Ragar again, reported the cat that was rubbing the sides of his face against Ragar's boots.

"Come in," Frankenstein said, then realized he should have checked with Raizel. This was his bedroom, after all, and it only took a flicker of thought to question. Raizel was pleased to see Ragar, but even so. He was a person, and Frankenstein shouldn't forget that just because he had Raizel bound.

"Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel." Ragar bowed. "The Lord wishes for you and Frankenstein to visit him."

Raizel nodded and began to extricate himself from the covers. Frankenstein frowned, considering being annoyed, but he did wish to find out what had happened. _He_ didn't have to go just because some noble said so, but Raizel was a noble and Frankenstein didn't want him wandering off on his own. Especially when the Lord had just killed three clan leaders, so despite how powerful Raizel was, he might be in danger.


	6. Chapter 6

The fire still wasn't out: Ragar and Raizel ignored it, leaping ahead, but Frankenstein held an arm in front of his mouth and nose on general principles.

…Well, that wasn't there before.

A huge crater surrounded the castle. The border was unnaturally circular, and the bottom was perfectly flat. Not even glass, he saw, peering down through the water that was already rushing in to fill it, so they couldn't land down there without Raizel getting his shoes wet. Rock, soil not altered by heat – had some barrier protected it, and the surrounding landscape? Then why the fire?

Crossing the distance from the crater's edge to the castle in a leap would be difficult, so Raizel and Ragar had stopped at the edge of the fire-blackened rim and begun to fly instead. Frankenstein did the same, grateful for the practice remaining in midair while fighting Ragar and Gejutel. Otherwise he might have wobbled.

He _had_ been to the outer areas of the castle before, mainly to ambush Gejutel when Gejutel tried to avoid him to avoid having to fight him. Turning down a direct request was discourteous, so if he could corner the old man he had him trapped unless Gejutel could come up with an excuse for turning Frankenstein down.

Those outer areas weren't there anymore. Was it that they hadn't been as strongly warded as the Lord's throne room, residence and sanctuary, or was the central keep protected by an 'eye of the storm' effect? His curiosity itched at him: if a way could be found for humanity to fight not just clan leaders, but the _Lord_ …

Ragar opened a door, gesturing for them to go in. Frankenstein preceded Raizel into the throne room, for safety's sake.

There was a carpet leading up to a dais where the throne was flanked by two glowing blue cubes. Gejutel and Krasis stood on either side of the carpet. There were other nobles – clan leaders? – next to them, but they were in the position of genuflection he'd seen when ordinary nobles greeted clan leaders. They all appeared to be women – one with white hair in a massive braid, one with grey hair in an elaborate arrangement and the third with short black hair.

The blond who had appeared after Raizel's battle to give orders to the clan leaders and carry off the purple-haired child was sitting on the throne. The fingers of his left hand were tapping the armrest in a way that Frankenstein couldn't quite bring himself to call fidgeting. There was something very deliberate about it. The movement cut off when the Lord saw Raizel step forward to stand by Frankenstein's side and smiled for him, bright and cheery. Yet it was still _very_ clear that the smile was for Raizel, not an accurate reflection of the Lord's feelings.

Raizel just looked at him, but instead of getting down to business the Lord's eyes seemed to focus on him and the smile deepened, finally reaching his eyes. "So the two of you finally made a contract! Congratulations!"

Frankenstein's eyes narrowed. "No we did _not_. I don't need some noble's power."

"Glad to hear it! But you have made a… Oh dear." The Lord tapped his cheek thoughtfully. "Gejutel, he didn't get the facts of life out of you?"

"I haven't discussed anything illegal with the human, no Lord."

"I was expecting you to come and ask me for a blood sample and shake down Gejutel for information!" The Lord shook his head, practically saying 'silly me' aloud. "A true contract happens with blood as a medium, when both souls desire it. What you two share is definitely a true contract."

"I took Raizel's blood, I didn't give him mine."

The Previous Lord blinked at him, seeming to wonder what that had to do with it before smiling. "So you don't need some noble's power to make a true contract?"

Raizel turned away from the Lord to look at Frankenstein, worried. "Do you desire an end to the contract?"

"No," Frankenstein said firmly. Raizel was his. He wasn't giving him up because the Lord couldn't tell the difference between this and a contract. Frankenstein didn't care to explain the details of Frankenstein's work to some noble so he could grasp what seemed like the obvious distinction to Frankenstein. He hadn't...

"Oh, don't compare a true contract to what those criminals were up to," the Lord said, shaking his hand with a disgusted expression. "How dare they break the law and pervert contracts to enslave humans like that…" As he spoke, Frankenstein could feel an aura of power rise in the air, all around them, and the ground beneath their feet began to shudder.

Gejutel coughed into his hand and the Lord jolted awake as if startled before very deliberately shifting in his throne to appear relaxed. "If I'm not careful I'll start setting off volcanoes." He shook his head at himself. "I'm just glad the island's still here."

"Lord, you should not have disciplined the clan leaders yourself," Raizel told him.

"But they broke the rules! I do have the right to sentence those who trespass against authority." The Lord smiled at him. "And they _asked_ me to be the one to do it. You know Gradeus has always hated this island, he'll be happy that some of it went with him."

Raizel was silent, but Frankenstein could feel his mourning and lack of surprise, see it in the slump of his shoulders. He felt like Frankenstein did when he failed to save a patient he knew was already as good as dead.

Gejutel looked at Raizel, and looked away again before saying, "The others were Roctis and Zarga."

A flash of gratitude from Raizel, that he hadn't had to ask.

"They also asked to be sent into eternal sleep. In exchange for arrangements for the children in their care."

"They did not need to be forced into eternal sleep, Lord," Gejutel said, vexed. "They were about to enter it on their own, and that would have made far less noise. It will take years for the Kertia to be sure they've found everyone, and the ones who panicked and fled Lukedonia will be too afraid to come back once they realize what they've done."

"The animals were frightened," Raizel told the Lord, backing up Gejutel's disapproval. As though a noble lord would care about a human's pet animals, yet Raizel clearly expected him to care about Raizel's evident disapproval.

"Well, we can't have that… but it was Gradeus' last request, so since I'm a benevolent Lord I'll just have to make it up to them! I know, I'll send Raskreia and Claudia over to play with them. They'll like that, won't they, Raizel?"

Raizel nodded with dignity.

"I'll send them over to see you soon," the Lord said, waving at the clan leaders. "You three; this is Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel, the Noblesse. Normally it's his duty to make sure that clan leaders aren't abusing their power, but there's no need to bother him by making him send you to eternal sleep, is there? Raizel, these are Oto Siriana, Ignes Kravei, and Gwendolen. The Kravei clan soul weapon has been sealed away until I feel like releasing it. Ignes is rather young, so by her father's request I'm placing her in Gejutel's care along with Urokai."

Gejutel glowered, but at Ignes instead of the Lord. No, there he went glowering at the Lord again. "As for the nobles, Lord?"

Frankenstein's ears picked up at that. Urokai definitely needed a minder – had Zarga been Urokai's minder _officially_?

"We'll have the Central Order Knights and your clansmen find the nobles who fled Lukedonia. That will let us see if the Central Order Knights still behave when exposed to temptation." The Lord's smile vanished.

"And if their werewolf accomplices attack my clan?" Gejutel pressed him.

"We just returned a batch of captives: you'd think their executions would make the rest of the werewolves behave, at least for awhile."

"Unless it enrages their close relatives," Gejutel pointed out. "I've seen several with strong resemblances to past offenders. If I didn't know better I'd think they _were_ the same werewolves…" He blinked, then shook his head and snorted at himself. "No, it may be hard for us to tell them apart when they don't have souls to sense, but they shouldn't be able to fool other werewolves." So it was silly for Gejutel to think that perhaps they _were_ the same individual werewolves?

"Are you so certain of that?" Frankenstein wondered. The nobles weren't the only species of immortals that might be restarting the Union again every time he thought he had them wiped out. Was he going to have to go to their land, wherever it was, and investigate them next? He'd rather not leave Raizel's home.

"If werewolves are helping noble criminals and we get proof, I'll be able to bring that up with Muzaka. Tell him to leave you alone and come see me the next time he visits you, Raizel. And don't forget to send him!" The Lord laughed while Raizel stared at him blankly. "That's what I wanted to tell you about, so you two don't need to stay."

Raizel's response to those words from the Lord was _deep_ suspicion, but the Lord just smiled at them.

"Gejutel, do find time to tell them the facts of life, but until then, don't do anything I wouldn't do!"

* * *

Raizel had spent _years_ petting Frankenstein's familiars for him, which meant they came to Frankenstein demanding pettings less often, leaving his hands free for all the work he needed to do. That meant it was really only fair to acquiesce when Raizel looked at his hands when he poured the tea, remembering the bath and wanting to experience what made the animals so willing to interact with him.

"You don't need to be useful," Frankenstein told him, sitting down on the bedside with his own cup of tea placed on the table and a journal in his lap – he'd brought it in here to make observation notes on Raizel's condition and Frankenstein's recovery from the effort of binding such a powerful noble. Thankfully, keeping Dark Spear contained was a function of his mental state more than his level of power, and familiars like Raizel were good for his mood.

He felt Raizel's puzzlement.

"You're a person: you don't need to be useful to others, you have value in and of yourself. As for the familiars, yes, I do usually choose them for their utility value, but I was just thinking of the fact that being pleasant company is useful." If Raizel _was_ an animal, Frankenstein was sure kings and emperors would fight to own examples of the breed for their sheer beauty and grace. He reached out to touch the top of Raizel's head and rested his hand there for a second, checking to see that Raizel didn't mind it, in case the desire to be touched was nothing but a momentary whim. He didn't want to make his host… his noble… his newest familiar… his Raizel uncomfortable.

The brown dog walked onto Frankenstein's lap, lying down on top of his journal hopefully.

He did have two hands, true.

Frankenstein appreciated how his familiars enjoyed their simple pleasures. It kept him from losing sight of them himself, from feeling nothing but rage at the world and shame at his failure. However, he couldn't stay in this room all day. Aside from the cooking, he also had research to do. There was only so much work he could bring with him to Raizel's room. Perhaps he could set up a cot in the lab?

Was he considering allowing a noble who _wasn't_ in chains into his lab? But the familiar binding should be just as effective at keeping Raizel from abusing Frankenstein's research. And he did need to study Raizel's condition.

* * *

It just seemed to make sense to pick Raizel up and carry him from his bed to the cot Frankenstein set up next to the desk in his lab, instead of allowing him to walk. Yes, Raizel was sick, but that wasn't the real reason. It was the reason he smiled when his birds perched on his arm, or a kitten wished to sit on his shoulder.

Perhaps he should consider the possibility of mental effects, Frankenstein wondered But this couldn't be a contract, he couldn't be mind-controlled… could he? He was the one who had taken the blood, and Raizel would never. He could see in Raizel's mind that Raizel would _never_ control him!

"But we have entered into a contract of the soul," Raizel told him after Frankenstein set him down on the neatly made cot.

He smiled condescendingly as he sat down at his desk chair, certain he knew better than Raizel, and only realized how insulting that was when his familiar frowned up at him from where he lay, black hair spread out on the pillow. Frankenstein realized he was too used to dealing with animals and others who were less intelligent than he was: he shouldn't make insulting assumptions.

"I am the Noblesse, I understand matters of the soul, Frankenstein."

"No," he said. "This is not a contract. Don't compare it to _that_." And that was when he realized that the refusal to entertain the idea? Was not like him. This was _denial_.

Because this was warm, this was so like his bond to his familiars, simply _more_ , so if this was a contract and he had to turn away from it in revulsion, would he have to stop taking familiars? Would he be alone from now on, unable to relax without anything to watch over him, without any company but Dark Spear's whispers?

How could this possibly have ended up as a contract?

…Because he wished to possess Raizel. Because he was used to bonding with subhuman intelligences – he might care for them, but they were still animals. He could trust them because they were _his_ , and he had wanted Raizel to be his possession. Wanted to control Raizel's life, make this beautiful creature belong to him. Wanted Raizel's house to be his home as well, the way the criminals gained riches as well as slaves. Moved into the castle of the local lord, taking the best of everything for themselves. The most beautiful humans were theirs, if they wished.

He needed to find some way to release Raizel.

But….

But he _wanted_ this. Him. He wanted this _so much_. "Am I now your slave… or are you mine?" The blood should mean that Raizel was his, and then he could simply not warp and twist Raizel's will to serve his purposes, but if Raizel owned his soul now, then what was Frankenstein to do?

"A true contract occurs when both souls are willing. We gave our souls to each other, as much as we wished to give and receive."

If that was how it worked, "I could have drained you!" He'd wished to possess all of Raizel!

The noble shook his head. "You did not wish to harm me."

That… _might_ matter. If his subconscious had access to Raizel's knowledge that draining power would hurt him – Frankenstein's knowledge, for that matter. Thinking it through let him relax a little, especially because his personal observations did indicate that _want_ was very central to this. Whatever this really was.

He'd _contracted_ not a _human_ , but a _person_. A person who gave him refuge, who had allowed him to live as a guest in his home for years. That came with certain obligations, like not violating the soul of his host.

Raizel sighed, but this wasn't just a flash of irritation.

"What is it?" Frankenstein asked him.

The noble looked away, reluctance to say something bad about someone visible. "You are quick to dismiss the words and thoughts of others."

"…True," Frankenstein admitted. "Forgive me for insulting you." He didn't mean to hurt Raizel's feelings, it was just that nobles seemed to know, to _think_ so little about their own powers, just like humans knew little about how their bodies worked before Frankenstein began his research. "You have reason to believe that a true contract is different from ordinary contracts?"

"A true contract is an ordinary contract. What you fear is not what a contract should be."

So the criminals' contracts were… altered from the original template somehow? From Raizel's level of disgust, the word might be _perverted_. The Lord had ordered Gejutel to provide information: he could take advantage of that. Gejutel was old enough to remember when contracts were legal: Frankenstein had thought that they were forbidden because they were evil things to do to humans, but if they didn't innately steal away a human's will at the noble's discretion, then why were they forbidden?

To keep humans from getting to use the powers of nobles?

What if the original contracts were something like Frankenstein's familiar bonds? Links to animals. Nobles weren't very social among their own kind, but they did seem to have _some_ drive and desire to interact with others. But some of those animals were humans, able to argue with the nobles and use those powers for things the nobles didn't approve of.

If nobles originally contracted humans not for power (even though they scoffed at the idea of humans having power) but for _company_ , then of course Raizel was happy, even flattered that Frankenstein wished to make a contract with him. And if Raizel truly believed that there was nothing wrong with a contract in and of itself, then it made sense that it wouldn't matter to him if a human was the one to make a contract instead of a noble. Especially when he'd been on speaking terms with Frankenstein's familiars for _years_ and knew what it was like for them.

His noble sat up in the cot and leaned over to touch his shoulder. Frankenstein smiled reassuringly, permitting the liberty. He saw Raizel's shoulders relax when he did.

"You were never afraid of me," his noble said, "but I am happy that you are no longer cautious."

'You knew?' Frankenstein might have said, but Raizel was a powerful empath.

"I did not mind," Raizel said, seeing the tilt of his head. Then he paused, and Frankenstein felt his worry. "Will you stop bringing animals because you no longer need them to watch me?"

"Don't worry," Frankenstein assured him.

Raizel's small sigh was one of relief. "The kittens and puppies did not have anywhere they belonged. You gave them a home. You made this place home." _For all of us_.

"Perceptive," Frankenstein complimented him, making a note to study Raizel's perceptions – what was relayed through the bond was _fascinating_. Raizel was an extreme case, but he could always use more data on nobles. He wasn't going to _experiment_ on Raizel, but data collection was different, and he knew Raizel would be happy there was something he could do to assist Frankenstein.

His noble was so sweet, Frankenstein just had to lean forward and place a kiss on Raizel's forehead. When he pulled back, he saw the most adorable blush on Raizel's cheeks. It matched the amazed happiness in his familiar's soul – so simple to make him so happy, and for a long time the happiness of Frankenstein's familiars was the only happiness he felt.

It seemed that the Lord had cleaned house fairly thoroughly, although of course Frankenstein would need to conclude his investigation in Lukedonia before being sure the criminal organization was stamped out there – he wasn't just going to leave it to a noble. But any survivors would go to ground for some time, like before, trusting in their immortality, so for now he could focus on his research and nursing his newest familiar back to health. "I enjoy looking after patients," he told his Raizel, before he could worry that he was being a burden or say that Frankenstein shouldn't go to so much trouble. "It has been pleasantly nostalgic to take care of you." A reminder of better days, when his business was saving lives instead of ending them.

Raizel nodded, unsurprised even though many would be by the fact Frankenstein _had_ a soft side. He'd been forced to do a great deal of work to conceal it.

"Your soul is wounded, but it still feels… pleasant," Frankenstein mused, determinedly making that an understatement. It was more than pleasant. It wasn't simply that Raizel's heart was warm, his thoughts gentle and soft, but at the core of him was the cold steel of honor. That part of Raizel must have something to do with why he'd fought Lagus – perhaps he'd heard enough from Frankenstein of the criminals' mistreatment of human souls and was moved to strike him down. Raizel might have done it on Frankenstein's behalf, and yet Frankenstein was certain there was more to it than that.

Raizel had killed, yet he was still pure, innocent, …sad. Why Raizel? Why had he not gone to the Lord, if Raizel trusted in his justice?

Why had he not told Frankenstein whatever he realized when he saw that red stone, and let Frankenstein fight humanity's enemy? "Afraid I might get hurt fighting a clan leader?" he asked, more to tease than out of real insult. He couldn't blame Raizel for worrying, when he was such a caring creature. Frankenstein had kept dogs or centuries, and knew he might as well ask a fish not to swim. Even if they were weaker than Frankenstein, his familiars still wished to protect him.

Raizel sighed, but instead of the expected confession, or even a claim that since Frankenstein insisted on posing as Raizel's servant and taking advantage of that to redecorate Raizel's house, Raizel had every right to take advantage of his position as Frankenstein's 'master' to protect him against another noble, he said, "It was my duty as Noblesse?"

"Oh?" This 'Noblesse' business might answer the question of why clan leaders deferred to Raizel. Frankenstein wanted an explanation when it had been years and he hadn't gotten one until now, but most of his attention was caught up in examining the feel of Raizel's soul.

How it _fit_ so well with his. How even though Raizel was a noble and Frankenstein's soul still was a human's (if his energies felt like a noble's then nobles could detect him), Raizel still felt so much like him. It made it so comfortable to nestle against his energies. His other familiars were welcome presences, but Raizel? It could just be the effect of noble energies on a human's perceptions, but Raizel truly felt… made for him, almost.

That made him give the noble a suspicious look. "You haven't been altering your soul to make it more comfortable for me when you're already sick, have you?"

Raizel shook his head. "What you have noticed: I saw it when you wore my shirt."

The first night they met. No, the first time they met, when Frankenstein had dismissed Raizel as just another noble, another obstacle. It wasn't until he saw Raizel's lonely back standing there by that window that he'd seen Raizel as a _person_. "You said that you sensed Dark Spear." Had asked Frankenstein why he was surrounded by a presence that hated him. "You also sensed my soul?" Through all his shielding? Why not, when Raizel was able to sense Dark Spear through the second layer of shields that served to hold it back from devouring Frankenstein.

His noble gave Frankenstein a dignified nod, made enthralling by the traces of color on his cheeks.

So he'd seen that Frankenstein's soul was compatible with his the first time they met? Was this the noble version of love at first sight? No wonder Raizel was so accommodating. Why he let Frankenstein move in with him. Let Frankenstein redecorate the house as though what was Raizel's was Frankenstein's.

By the… his noble was _besotted_ with him.

The blush only deepened as Frankenstein let Raizel see his thoughts, turning as crimson as his eyes, and soft sounds of embarrassment began to escape the quiet noble's lips.

It was _the cutest thing Frankenstein had ever seen_ , and he had centuries to become quite the learned judge of adorable things, with all the small animals he'd tended (if only because early care, feeding and enrichment had great effects on how intelligent animals would be and he needed useful familiars).

He stroked Raizel's hair. "It's alright," Frankenstein said, beckoning the noble to curl closer against his soul. The soul Raizel had gazed at longingly for _years_ , and yet it had never occurred to Raizel that he could just _take_ Frankenstein's blood and have that soul for his own. The mere thought horrified his noble, and the idea that someone might do that to Frankenstein drew forth protectiveness from that gentle soul, the intent to kill anyone who even thought of violating such a spirit… or _any_ spirit.

The sense Frankenstein had of Raizel now… if he'd been able to sense this much the first night they met, he would have moved _much_ sooner to make Raizel his, but poor Raizel was too shy… No, he hadn't dared to dream of being allowed to touch this precious soul.

And yet he'd loved and cared for Frankenstein's familiars, instead of growing to hate them out of jealousy, because Frankenstein gave them so freely what he would never give a noble?

Honestly Frankenstein had to wonder if his mind was being tampered with, because how could his Raizel be so perfect?

 _His_ Raizel. This noble was his now, and… No. It wasn't that he would never let Raizel go. He would let the noble leave if the bond began to cause him pain: Frankenstein had seen the horror of too many 'unwilling contracts' to inflict _that_ on another living being. Especially one so sweet. He wouldn't let this become a violation of Raizel's soul, but if it began to pain him, if Raizel wished to leave… Frankenstein would have to be the one to leave, really, this was Raizel's home. He didn't want to _take_ it from him, just… have it be his as well.

A flicker of concern from Raizel, the desire to reassure Frankenstein when the noble felt him worry, but Raizel was already used to Frankenstein being over-cautious, and the best way to reassure Frankenstein that Raizel enjoyed the bond was to, well, enjoy the bond.

Frankenstein hummed softly to himself, smiling because Raizel was quite right about that. It was pleasant, no, more than pleasant to just sit there in his well-appointed lab, stroking that jet-black hair. He could have gone on to say 'ivory skin,' 'ruby eyes' and other such things, but anyone who couldn't see that Raizel was a priceless work of art with a single glance was either blind or had met too many nobles.

It took even _Frankenstein_ nearly ten years to not just see Raizel as the exception but act on it.

Normally he tried to ignore the supernatural beauty of nobles but right now he had a _responsibility,_ as Raizel's doctor, to observe him very thoroughly.

* * *

It seemed to Frankenstein as though he had only just left off his examination of Raizel and allowed his noble to put his shirt back on, but from the position of the moon seen through a wolf's eyes he had been jotting down his observations and designing further tests for hours when he was alerted to the approach of two clan leaders.

One redhead, one blond. It might have been amusing – he was looking forward to Urokai's reaction provided he could make sure the inevitable battle occurred outside of his noble's house, except the redhead was _not_ Urokai.

Oh, the blonde was Edian, but she was leaning against the Mergas clan leader. Frankenstein got to his feet, alarmed to see her stumble. A _clan leader_ , one of the not just 'gods' but _Olympians_ , had stumbled and needed to be righted by her companion like a drunk being taken home from the bar.

…Could clan leaders get drunk? Visions of devastation like that which surrounded the castle flitted before Frankenstein's mind's eye.

Sensing Raizel's concern, he sent his noble the image. Oh? "You know what this is?"

Raizel's lips were sealed and mind shielded as he thought, but it was obvious to someone who had spent ten years observing him that he wasn't happy, even without the bond. Raizel's mental shields didn't cut the bond off – that was a relief.

Seeing his noble begin to stand up, Frankenstein bent down and picked him up. "I'll bring you to your regular room."

The two clan leaders were advancing towards the manor very slowly. From the Knight-Commander's stiff posture, she was utterly embarrassed. Not by Edian's missteps – her eyes grew hard as flint when Edian's head flopped forward, or the Drosia clan leader needed to pause for a moment to breathe in the cold night air and try to clear her head – but by the fact that she was assisting Edian. It was a _horrible_ insult for a clan leader to come to the aid of another clan leader. It implied their peer _needed the help_.

Even though Edian did seem to need the help right now, an owl's keen ears could easily make out Mergas apologizing.

If they were humans, it would be Edian apologizing for inconveniencing her peer, but for nobles being able to assist someone else was an honor, so if anything it was Mergas in Drosia's debt, not the other way around.

Still, this level of inelegance? Edian's cheeks should have burned as red as Raizel's did earlier when he was divested of his precious shirt, but instead they were pale, and if that was noble reserve Frankenstein would make a hat and eat it.

Frankenstein opened the front door after settling Raizel on one of the couches in the room by his window. The two of them still hadn't made it in sight of the house – the other clan leader was only supporting Edian, not pulling her along. For a moment Frankenstein hesitated to walk out the door, leave his house and Raizel, but it wasn't as though he was leaving his poor sick noble undefended and he'd never seen a phenomenon like this before in a noble. He needed to go ask nosy questions.

He walked down the path with a spring in his step, but it stopped being funny when Edian lifted glazed eyes to look at him. "Are you alright?" he asked her, feeling honest concern. Like Urokai (although Edian was far less annoying), he did appreciate her concern for Raizel. Then again, Roctis had also threatened him on Raizel's behalf, and Raizel hadn't been surprised that the Lord had executed the Kravei clan leader. To be fair, by noble standards after only a few years Frankenstein's investigation of the clan leaders had barely begun. The fact nobles moved so slowly compared to humans meant he had less to observe per year, and thus fewer chances to spot their true colors.

"Lagus Tradio has been poisoning her for years."

Edian shook her head, a slow and mechanical movement. "It was a gift. It took… the pain away, but there isn't any more…"

"Lagus taught Claudia nothing of the clan techniques, and the Lord won't allow her to take responsibility for a clan leader's condition upon herself."

Frankenstein opened his mouth to tell Mergas to carry Drosia inside, but instead he said, "Pardon me," and lifted up Edian. She was far too light for a swordswoman, but a noble's anatomy had nothing to do with her strength.

Edian just stared at him.

"There's a chance there's still enough of that painkiller in your system for me to find it and reproduce it, but that chance decreases by the minute," given a noble's healing.

He was right: the promise of more obtained Edian's instant compliance. That wasn't good.

Not that he intended to make any more of it than he needed to in order to test it and find an antidote. A poison that worked on nobles would have been a godsend when he was far weaker and needed every advantage he could get against the criminals, but he doubted this was as mild a poison as alcohol. Not when Lagus Tradio had somehow managed to make _Raizel_ move to kill him.

He wasn't really surprised to see Raizel in the entry hall when he carried Edian inside. He wasn't keeping tabs on Raizel's position, and he'd been aware of his concern for his fellow noble.

She was turning her face away, ashamed for a noble she admired to see her in such an inelegant position.

…Frankenstein had expected her to remark on the fact Frankenstein had familiar-bound Raizel. There was enough of Raizel's energy rubbed off on Frankenstein's aura after Raizel's cuddling session for her to sense it. Unless this poison had affected the noble's senses, but a noble sensed souls _with_ their soul. That meant whatever she'd been taking had affected her very soul?

Growing more and more concerned by the second, when Frankenstein reached the place where he would have gone straight to reach Raizel's room, he instead turned and brought her to his real lab. It was fortunate he already had a cot ready.

He consoled himself with the thought that Edian was too unfocused to steal his secrets. He'd have preferred to send Mergas away, but he could have Raizel keep an eye on her for him.

Frankenstein had killed _dozens_ of nobles, and they still allowed him to keep a vulnerable Raizel and now handed a clan leader who couldn't defend herself over to him? He really was the only doctor on Lukedonia, for them to be that desperate. The 'Shield of the Lord' didn't even seem to be wary of him – oh, she was concerned for her fellow clan leader and old friend, but she seemed to be assuming that he would help Edian, not take this opportunity to harm her. So this was the unthinking trust that let the criminals get as far as they had… He shook his head, setting up another blood test. He was tempted to use Edian's blood to gather data on clan leaders, but later. When she was out of the woods. At that point she would owe it to him – at this point, neglecting a patient in need for the sake of his own curiosity would be wrong, noble or not.

"Would it help to have blood that is not poisoned?" Commander Mergas asked him.

He had that vial of Raizel's blood, but Raizel wasn't a clan leader and if she was offering. "It wouldn't hurt." If he was correct and Tradio's poison was attacking the soul through a noble's mimic of a human brain, then by this point there might not be any foreign chemicals left to identify, just unnatural levels of chemicals the body manufactured naturally. When there were still aspects of a noble's power over their body, and the relationship between body and soul he didn't understand, he couldn't use a human baseline for comparison.

When Edian started going into more serious withdrawal, Frankenstein became very grateful he'd allowed the clan leader specialized in _shielding_ to stay. Otherwise, even with the chains Frankenstein had designed and filled with energy to restrain nobles a clan leader suffering paranoid delusions and in her more lucid moments aware that Frankenstein was her best source of _more_ if she was able to stab it out of him would have wrecked his lab, not to mention Raizel's mansion. It wasn't until Edian's mind retreated into unconsciousness and Mergas turned down Raizel's offer to attempt to fix her mind to bring her to the Lord and see what he could do that Frankenstein felt it was safe to allow his more fragile familiars to return to the manor.

Although the failure to cure her was upsetting, he consoled himself with the thought that since he no longer had a patient with an urgent condition, he could get back to studying Raizel's illness.

When a raven warned him that Edian was on her way to the manor, he was expecting an irritating conversation and a failure to express proper gratitude – to be fair, it was difficult for nobles to say thank you without insulting the person they were trying to thank. He wasn't expecting his second noble patient to check herself back in.

The Lord helped her regain consciousness, but even though his powers let him repair her mind and regain control of herself, he couldn't do anything to keep the poison (or perhaps addiction) from eroding her soul and undoing all of his hard work.

He'd glanced over at Raizel, but Raizel was expecting him to help her because he thought Frankenstein was the kind of benevolent person who, coming across a random noble, was willing to spend years taking care of them. Frankenstein would have to explain to his noble that Raizel was a special case. "Well, I can't miss this chance to gain data on the clan leaders. Or force one to go about the rest of their immortal life knowing they owe their sanity to a human's generosity."

* * *

 _Gwendolen means 'white ring' and is the name of a mythological queen who defeated her husband in battle, meaning it's associated with fighting/strength and suitable for a war god's successor – it also suggests Grendel and Wendigo, which are likely sources for the mythical monster Gradeus is based on. Headcanon is that he created her (and likely some other purebloods) ages ago wanting them to get strong enough to be worth fighting. The clan has very few non-purebloods because the weaker ones often ended up getting sent to eternal sleep by a frustrated Gradeus, which may have something to do with them not seeming to have a clan name. The explanation for why she and her siblings aren't around in canon is that Gradeus killed all of them before leaving Lukedonia._

 _Oto is Otohime minus the 'princess' suffix – there were folktales re. Chinese dragon princesses, but I couldn't find their names and eventually decided to use a more well-known Japanese dragon princess' name._

 _The Previous Lord made a point of Ignes not getting the soul weapon because until she does she's not technically a clan leader and Raizel doesn't have to probe her mind – the instant he does, he'll execute her and that'd waste his lifeforce. With Gejutel, Ragar and Urokai all keeping an eye on her, not to mention her anger over being deprived of a soul weapon, he figures it's not long before she slips up and he can execute her._

 _The Lord did explain Raizel's job as Noblesse in Frankenstein's hearing in this chapter, but Frankenstein had other concerns, and just… Raizel, an inquisitor? You can't be serious, he'd be terrible at it when he's so reluctant to be cruel… which explains how the criminals got to stick around for so long, true._

 _Frankenstein and Raizel's souls fitting together so nicely and the two of them adoring each other as per canon is mainly due to the fact that the two of them are_ ridiculously _alike to the point you really could use the term 'other half' here, buuuuut I'm also going with the headcanon that humans evolved to get nobles to give us contracts and to pacify nobles because they could easily wipe out tribes from a single episode of lost temper. So humans have instincts about contracts like how we have instincts about romantic love because cooperation and demonstrating loving bonds is so good for reproductive survival. If two people find each other ridiculously attractive, it doesn't mean they_ aren't _just that compatible, but biology is definitely contributing to the level of lovesick (to make sure they don't miss this chance if they are just that compatible, among other things)._

 _My take on their relationship is that Raizel saw Frankenstein's soul and it stunned him, basically love at first sight, while Frankenstein didn't have that same ~sense and while he had an attack of the feels the_ second _time he saw Raizel, he had to gradually get to know Raizel over years before he was_ that _in love. Now that they are bonded, Frankenstein's instincts are part of why his emotions are 'yes this,' and his soul is also making it good for Raizel too~_

 _Headcanon is that the previous Mergas clan leader was the short-haired redheaded woman from the Beginning of Destruction OVA._

 _& there should be only one more chapter, but that's what I thought while working on this…_


	7. Chapter 7

When the purple-haired girl arrived, escorted by a black-haired young woman whose face seemed frozen like that, the ravens were convinced that she was a tree.

That was the report Frankenstein received when they were coming up the path to his house – one noble followed by a tree.

When he opened the front door to greet them, one of the birds flew out past him and descended on her shoulder, backwinging and coming in for a landing slowly enough to let her get used to the idea. It would have utterly ruined her hair if it wasn't in braids and she wasn't a noble. Noble hair only got _artfully_ windswept, thank you very much.

Then the blasted bird looked at him as though this settled the matter – see? Tree.

" _You realize letting you perch on him doesn't make Raizel a tree either."_

That earned him a caw of laughter. " _Flockmate is a bird_." Obviously. So much for superior human intelligence. The blasted thing preened herself, quite satisfied.

"We are here to pet and cuddle with the animals," the older(-looking, he couldn't be sure) noble informed him.

"Come in, we were informed that you would be visiting. How long will you be staying?" he asked, smiling for the seeming-child.

The young woman's brow wrinkled. "…Will a week be sufficient?" she asked finally, as they walked down the hall. "It has been in the past when my father sent me to sit across from Raizel."

In principle, he didn't want nobles in his house, with his lab, for that long. On the other hand, he already had one noble patient. "You should ask Raizel, but we will inform you if you've overstayed your welcome. Ah, one warning – if the north wing is noisy, please forgive the source, she's still not quite herself." Edian Drosia was always more embarrassed at the fact she'd sometimes yell or scream than she was upset by the fact she'd been in enough discomfort to get past noble resolve. "I'm sure she'll feel better if she doesn't know you're here and you pretend you never heard anything," from his understanding of nobles. The two of them nodded, even though _humans_ would have at the very least had their eyebrows raised and wanted to know why someone under his roof was _screaming_. It was a human impulse, or at least the impulse of any decent human, to go towards the screaming, but nobles considered implying that someone needed help adding insult to injury.

"May I have your names?" he asked when they reached the hallway leading to Raizel's room.

"Erga Kinesis di Raskreia."

Oh? That could have been 'Ergakinesis D. Raskreia,' which would fit the naming pattern of several other nobles, but it sounded more akin to Raizel's name. So the Noblesse shared the same naming schema as the Lord's clan? "And you?" he asked the little lady.

"Crippled Tradio."

His smile froze on his face. "…Excuse me?"

Her shoulders hunched in smaller. "Cripple of Clan Tradio."

What the… The Lord had called her Claudia, hadn't he? …But that was what the name Claudia _meant_. Someone with a lamed leg. Given how noble translation powers functioned… There was a Roman patrician house with that name that eventually produced an emperor – the house was founded by a Sabine who betrayed his people by defecting to the Romans. The emperor had not ruled well even taking biased sources into account, and he'd adopted the crazed Nero, putting him on the throne as the next emperor. Would a noble be aware of that history?

One who had traveled in human lands and might have intended to rule an empire, given that the contractors (or false contractors) had used their power to hold lands, especially with the threat of unleashing mutants.

No, no matter what the name 'Claudia' could mean, if noble translation worked the way he thought it did, then when her father said her name, this girl had heard 'useless cripple.' Worse, in a number of ancient cultures, cripples couldn't rule or inherit – no one without a perfect body could, so what did it mean that a pureblood child who should have been the heir was given that name? Was she intended to never inherit? Then why make her at all? Then there were cultures where being a cripple was a sign that you were _cursed by the gods_ , which in the context of nobles, especially a noble involved with the Union's experiments was ringing every alarm bell he had. It shouldn't be _possible_ to lame a noble unless the injury became part of their self-image. And what was more central to someone's identity than their name?

He didn't want to correct her pronunciation – the girl looked all too used to any criticism being meant harshly. He didn't want to see her cringe. His mind raced to come up with a plan – fortunately he was a practiced tactician. "Come with me, young lady," he told her.

That got him an unexpected frown from the older one. Claudia glanced at her, and turned back to Frankenstein, confused and expecting the answer to be something bad from the slight widening of her eyes? Oh? Ah, precedence. Honestly, why didn't nobles translate the title of their ruler as king or something? "Ah yes, Erga Kinesis di Raskreia would be the young lady. Why don't I call you little miss?"

"…I don't mind, sir?" she said tentatively, stepping back a bit.

"The clan leader of Clan Tradio is under the protection of the Lord until she reaches her majority," said the princess, from her expression a hair's breadth away from accusing him of messing with her little sister.

After the excitement of the Lord's executions, he'd made a point of remembering what it felt like when his familiars sensed an earthquake on the horizon. The ground wasn't shaking – yet – but it seemed as though Raskreia had inherited the Lord's powers in full measure.

He smiled approvingly at her before looking back down at the little miss. "Do you like my bird?" he asked her. "They think you're a very cute little tree."

She blinked at him almost in recognition, then smiled, relaxing. "The Lord called me that."

Hmm? Well, this sort of insight was why he listened to his familiars. It looked as though the Lord had worked fast, earning her trust, and now she seemed to have classified him as someone else like the Lord. "Well, he is supposed to be the wisest of all the nobles, so it must be easy for him to see that you're very cute. Most of my familiars like trees, and all of them adore cute things, so they'll be very happy such a cute little tree came to visit them."

She blushed at the rare compliment, looking up at the bird on her shoulder. While it wasn't as cute as his noble's blush, she was certainly the cutest tree he had ever seen. He should tell her that, once he'd gotten her settled and she was a little less overwhelmed.

* * *

Most nobles twitched when he revealed his presence: nobles weren't used to people getting anywhere near them without the noble sensing them first. Gejutel seemed not just used to humans creeping up on him, but entirely unimpressed by it.

That might explain how he'd guessed that Frankenstein would come to Lukedonia – he certainly looked old enough to have been one of the nobles worshipped by humans, before the nobles were ordered to Lukedonia. If so, it was reassuring to see that even noble-worshipping primitive humans had enough daring and audacity that Gejutel expected humans to try to put one over on even a clan leader.

This time, Frankenstein was too vexed to make even a token effort to sneak up on the old man. It got Gejutel's attention: Frankenstein not trying to get the drop on him earned him a deeply suspicious look.

"Were you able to retrieve personal papers from the Tradio manor? Anything? Or will I need to break in there myself?"

"As much as I owe it to my old friend to fix the damage he caused… A clan leader takes pride in everything they do!" he said, glaring at one of his minions who seemed to be slacking. "Because it is being done by them! Don't you have any pride in yourself or your actions?"

Ignes Kravei's face twisted as she picked up another stack of three blocks of stone, but she didn't dare snarl at the old noble.

Pity. Frankenstein would have liked to observe the result.

"Kids these days?" he asked when she was _not_ out of a noble's earshot.

"Children know better. Roctis Kravei should be glad he's in eternal sleep. Allowing his child to think she was so low that her conduct was not obviously beneath her… If I'd known, I'd have sent him to eternal sleep myself. As for Zarga, a clan leader should be able to set aside their… No, should take pride in admitting their inability for the sake of a child."

Speaking of noble children, "Claudia Tradio was never meant to inherit." She couldn't have been, not when any air of command, much less initiative, had been deliberately stamped out of her.

"Then why would Lagus exhaust himself creating a pureblood of his line?"

"I _don't know_." Frankenstein scowled at admitting ignorance to a noble, but it had to be done. " _Get me his notes_."

"They're gibberish. The Lord calls it ciphers – he's trying to rip the keys out of what's left of Lagus' memories. Urokai! You're being given the honor of helping to rebuild the Lord's castle, where the Knights and Clan Leaders gather! You should be thanking the Lord for the honor!"

Instead of pouting. At least until Urokai met Frankenstein's eyes, glaring at him for being here to see Gejutel ordering him to perform the manual labor of carrying stones from the quarry to the site of the castle. Frankenstein could see the moment he got close enough to realize what he was looking at. The fangs and glowing eyes were hard to miss.

"It was all a trick to get us to leave Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel alone so you could have your way with him!" Urokai snarled, pulling Dragus out of thin air. Soul weapons _did_ respond best to the will to protect, no matter how misguided.

"Where is your self-discipline?" Gejutel asked, displeased, stepping in between Urokai and Frankenstein. "Until you find some, disciplining you is my responsibility."

"Oh, I don't mind," Frankenstein said, smiling even though Gejutel was trying to take away his fun by blocking his aura so Frankenstein wasn't rubbing the contract in Urokai's face.

Gejutel sighed. "I've already let you have your fun with one child in my care… But if I let you beat up Urokai, I doubt you'll stop. I doubt I'll stop you, either."

"Oh? I seem to recall you threatening me over Ragar."

"Ragar is…" He saw Gejutel search for a word. " _Special_." He cleared his throat, changing the subject. "Urokai Agvain, as your guardian, it's my responsibility to keep you out of danger."

"Out of my way! No, you're the one who let this human find Sir Raizel! I'll send you both into eternal sleep!" Urokai declared, brandishing his weapon.

Gejutel's was bigger.

"Where is Ragar by the way?" Frankenstein asked when Gejutel was done summoning Regasus.

"The Lord is giving him new instructions on how to rebuild the castle. Again."

Frankenstein would have taken a moment (with eyebrow raised) to consider how best to exploit that opening – he needed to strike a balance between taunting Urokai and obtaining information on the Lord and whatever defenses were built into the castle – but his nose wrinkled when he smelled smoke. Glancing behind him, his eyes widened when he saw where it was coming from.

"How dare you turn your back on me!"

It was a pity to turn his back on Urokai – it meant he'd miss a chance to observe nobles disciplining their young. On the other hand, with Urokai occupied by chasing him, it would be easy for Gejutel to line up a shot.

The shockwave of Gejutel's charge and impact with Urokai rustled Frankenstein's hair, but this was an emergency. His garden might be burning!

* * *

"What did you do?" he demanded when he hit the ground, although his breathing calmed when he saw the firebreak he'd installed around the garden after the last fire had done its job.

"We were instructed to make the animals happy," Raskreia told him.

"What did _you_ do?" he demanded, this time of the raven on her shoulder.

" _Asked the_ _Revered Ancestor to start a fire so that our prey would reveal itself."_

Fleeing animals would break cover, making it easy for predators to spot them from the air.

At the noise behind him, Frankenstein half-turned to see two of his wolves carrying a deer through the ashen ground.

Ravens and wolves worked together very well – it seemed they did it in nature even without his interference. That was how he'd met this particular pack – they had a good reputation with the ravens of Lukedonia. "They brought me dead animals," Raskreia told him, and he looked down to see two rabbits at her feet. She'd spoken it as a statement, but it wasn't hard to guess that she was wondering what on earth was going on.

"One of them would be for the raven." To reward her for having the idea. "The other is yours, to thank you for setting the fire."

The two wolves set down their burden at Frankenstein's feet and began to roll around in the grass, taking care to wipe their paws. That was the reason he'd planted an area with this particular sort of grass, otherwise what were they to do but use the pond or the wheat if the larger trough by the drinking trough wasn't enough?

The younger one came over and jumped up, resting her forepaws on him the way a large dog would, only without trying to lick his face. He took her right paw and inspected it, removing a rock from between two of her toes. Ouch, flint – he winced looking at it, but thankfully even these edges weren't enough to break a familiar's skin.

She nosed at his chin in thanks instead of licking, then got down and followed her uncle around the side of the house to the wolf door, leaving the deer behind for him.

Frankenstein picked it up by the legs, grateful he could hold it at arm's reach even if it wasn't bleeding anymore. "Would you like me to take that?" he asked Raskreia, indicating her rabbit.

She looked down at it, nonplussed, before settling on, "Do as you like."

Well, of course he would. "In future, please check with me before starting any more fires on Raizel's property, thank you."

After taking his familiars' prey to the coldroom and quickly dressing it, he went to check on Edian. He'd left the cats in charge of her, but since the wolves and ravens had left Raizel's room to go fill the larder he wasn't surprised to sense that Raizel had joined the cats.

"Come in," his familiar said aloud when Frankenstein reached the door, so that Frankenstein wouldn't have to make noise by knocking.

When Frankenstein opened the door his eyebrows rose, a little surprised but not at all displeased. Raizel and Edian were sitting around a table – one of the folding tables Frankenstein had constructed for when he needed temporary surfaces – and four of the cats were sitting on it, having tea with them.

"The dogs helped me find the tea things," Raizel said, with a small glance at Frankenstein to see if he was displeased.

He smiled, sending a wisp of reassurance to his Raizel. He wasn't displeased at all. "Good thinking. After all the times Edian has come to visit you, it's kind of you to come visit her when she needs cheering up."

That was when he noticed that this wasn't the good china, or even the cat-patterned set he'd made to encourage Raizel to socialize with his familiars. Even the cats were drinking out of the plain mugs and saucers he'd made before he managed to find better clay.

So that was why Raizel was worried: he'd brought some of Frankenstein's things in here when Edian might lose control of herself again, putting them at risk of being broken. But the fact he'd brought the plainest set – no, the fact he'd thought of Frankenstein's feelings like that?

" _Company is good for patients,"_ he told Raizel with a smile, drawing red eyes to look up at his. " _Helping someone who ended up like this because she cared about you is well worth the risk. Honestly, I should have thrown these out eight years ago, so tell Edian not to worry if she has another fit."_

Come to think of it, now that he was blessed with dozens of unused rooms' worth of storage space, not to mention what he'd excavated for his lab, he might be in danger of turning into something of a pack rat. He should probably consider if he _really_ might ever use the things he had in storage… after Edian moved out and there was less likelihood he'd need immediate replacements for broken things.

Raizel risking the china was _nothing_ compared to the risk he'd taken by leaving the cats with her. If she hurt one hair on their heads…

He coughed when his familiars let him know that he was letting that power leak out. Embarrassing.

If Edian and the cats got along, perhaps he could foist some of the kittens off on her? Normally he kept his familiars from having too many offspring, but one of the cats had gone into heat while he was too busy with a patient in crisis so really it was Edian's own fault Frankenstein was going to have kittens to find homes for so the least she could do was take responsibility.

Ideally whatever feeling made it so devastating to her that she'd hurt Raizel during some business that none of the nobles would talk about – he hadn't pressed Raizel or Edian, not when Edian was unstable and he could sense how sad Raizel became just _thinking_ about it – could be sublimated into looking after other adorable things. Adorable things that _weren't Frankenstein's Raizel_.

Edian was terrible at looking after things, including and especially herself. He wouldn't even consider this if it weren't for the fact that cats could look after themselves.

Frankenstein excused himself - he still had one more noble to check in on.

He found Claudia asleep in Raizel's bed. The owl was perched on the headboard, opening sleepy eyes and hooting softly when he came in. He asked her why she wasn't in her room, and she showed him Raizel carefully tucking Claudia in the way Frankenstein tucked in Raizel and then asking the owl to sleep beside Claudia so she was not lonely.

Frankenstein _may_ have gone a little overboard with all the silk sheets and feather comforters and other blankets he'd piled on this bed after seeing Raizel was ill, he realized looking at the large roll of fabric with the tips of a few strands of purple hair peeking out.

Thank goodness nobles could control their body temperature, otherwise the child would be roasting in there. Worse, _sweating_.

He still thought the child could use a few parrots, but something that could fit in a roll of blankets with her, something she could hold... Perhaps one of the kittens?

She shifted under the blankets, trying to make herself even smaller. Just like a child wanting to keep the monsters from seeing them – even more futile for her, when untrained pureblood nobles were so easy to sense.

It was already obvious that she'd been emotionally abused, so it was possible that she just had the impulse to hide her face. Otherwise? Even the nobles with actual training did inexcusably poor jobs protecting their extremities by human standards.

Maybe a _very large wolf_. He would have to see if there were any retired female alphas among Lukedonia's wolves, ones too old to have their own pups anymore, that might be interested in a pup who would stay an adorable pup for a long time. Unless any more of Claudia's childhood was taken from her.

For now, Frankenstein went to the room that held his fabric and other supplies. Well. Rooms.

…Since he really _should_ be getting rid of some of this _anyway_ , and he did despise waste it was really only sensible to try to use up as many scraps as possible. Then there were the odder shades he'd obtained while experimenting with new dyes, and it really wouldn't take _that_ long to set up a velvet loom…

* * *

"This one is an elephant," he told his fascinated audience that night. Raizel and Claudia were openly wide-eyed with curiosity, while Raskreia maintained her blank face – he was beginning to wonder if she just didn't know _how_ to make human-like expressions. "They use the nose to drink water and pick food to eat, and the tusks to dig up food out of the ground. They're very big – humans can ride on their backs, like horses."

He handed the noble child the elephant, and she carefully put it on the couch between her and Raizel, next to the tortoise. Her lap was already full of the first four.

The one he took out of the (covered) basket next was, "A zebra."

"Do humans ride them as well?" Raskreia was the one to ask.

"No, it scares them too much. Horses are domesticated, but if a zebra finds a predator like a human on their back, they'll hurt themselves in their panic. Elephants are much smarter and less inclined to panic, and once they understand that in exchange for being ridden they'll be given food and taken care of, they're amenable to the idea."

Somehow his impulse to do a nice thing for a child, even a noble child, had turned into giving the Lord's heir, a future clan leader and whatever Raizel was (the impression he'd gotten couldn't be accurate, even nobles weren't that stupid surely?) a lecture on the concept of giving someone an incentive to want to do what you wanted them to do instead of stronger individuals forcing weaker ones into compliance.

Perhaps he should have focused on influencing the thinking of the next noble Lord, but the welfare of patients came first and right now he wanted this child to understand that what her father did to her was _wrong_.

* * *

 _Frankenstein you overachiever you. If it weren't for the fact he's already going to be babysitting regularly (the closest thing Lukedonia has to a pediatrician, too), he might try to fight the Lord over who gets to adopt Claudia._

' _Physically disabled people can't be rulers' is something that showed up in multiple ancient cultures, to the point that people might, oh, put out a deposed king's eye so he couldn't rally an army to try to get his throne back as an alternative to killing him and pissing off whatever power base let him be king in the first place. Of course, there's a case in recorded history of someone retaking their throne_ anyway _, and a case in Irish mythology of a god getting a prosthetic and therefore being able to retake his throne because his body was 'complete' again – Nuada of the Silver Arm._

 _Frankenstein as a very well-traveled doctor of his era who would have read a lot of treatises on medicine written a thousand plus years ago is very aware of ableism (especially since the Union bases its right to power partially on the ableist belief that people who can do more are better/deserve to rule and people who are less able are worthless) and various stigmas._

 _Obviously someone could name their kid Claudia back then not knowing what it means, because it's the name of a relative or a collection of pretty sounds (and in the present day we're in theory less ableist, although a couple recent cases where disabled people were mass murdered for being disabled would beg to differ), but Claudia_ does _know what it means, and a parent calling their kid what they most likely meant to mean weak/cursed/worthless?_

 _The ravens see the Lord and Raskreia as dragons, who are Revered Ancestors. Not that the ravens are very good at being reverent._

 _Gejutel seems pretty well-fed, but if winter sets in and he starts getting hungry the animals are a tad concerned that Claudia might be on the menu. You'll also notice they had Raskreia start that fire when Claudia wasn't present, even if green wood's pretty flame-resistant._


	8. Chapter 8

_Thanks General Zargon for pre-reading this for me! & I also am very grateful to zvaize of tumblr for the gorgeous cover image!_

 _The household in noblesse has bunny slippers. Who do you think picked them out? Or made them, more likely._

* * *

Frankenstein was standing on the small patio he'd built so his familiars could lounge outdoors in the sun without lying on the dirt, holding swatches of cloth up to Claudia's face. Her skin color, well, he'd seen far worse attempts to imitate a human shade, but he needed colors that would bring out red eyes and not clash with light purple hair.

Clothing was very important to morale, at least for him. In human society, clothing indicated status and affected how much respect others would give you. The same was true for nobles – the reason Frankenstein had simplified his usual clothing was that sticking closer to the principles behind Lukedonian elegance made prisoners take him far more seriously than they did someone wearing brocade or other types of elaborate clothing. He supposed that the amount of time sunk into creating clothing wouldn't be a mark of wealth for nobles, who had all the time in the world.

If they could shape their own clothing, then anything boastful or tasteless would reflect badly on them. Dressing like a king when their Lord's outfit was practically Spartan in its simplicity… save for the cloth-of-gold piping and how expensive a good true black dye was (many used blue or brown dye and dyed the clothing over and over until it became too dark for most to tell it wasn't black) and the added expense of having to re-dye the clothing before it could show the smallest sign it was beginning to fade, as dark colors would when exposed to sunlight. Then again, how often did the Lord go out into the sun? He'd left the castle a grand total of once since Frankenstein got here – he'd asked his familiars to keep an eye on the castle in case the Lord sent more clan leaders to fetch him. Or came personally.

The Central Order Knights' uniforms seemed overly simple, but were in fact extremely difficult for a human to replicate. He'd been forced to do quite a lot of experimentation and invent a few processes before he could create (and replicate) the suit that was now his standard clothing. Thankfully he'd already figured out a fabric that didn't pick up shed fur.

Not to mention the need to design something that fit what nobles considered military/clan leader style and forced them to take him seriously that didn't make it look like he was copying them or trying to look like a noble. He wouldn't give a noble grounds to accuse him of slavish imitation or aping his betters…

If a human could dress like nobles, then a noble could dress like humans. Children liked brightly-colored things and novelty, and Frankenstein had hit upon the idea that wearing different clothing might help remind Claudia that things were different now. He was sure that part of the reason the Lord only kept her for a week at a time before sending her back to Raizel's was for the sake of having her make the trip. Go outside, and be reminded that she wasn't trapped anymore.

Thankfully he'd run the idea of making Claudia new clothing that wasn't in Lukedonian style by Raizel. He'd intended to ask her what color she wanted. Showing her all the colors and letting her contemplate them should have fascinated the girl, judging from how much Raizel enjoyed choosing his shirts.

But if Raizel froze at the sight of all the cloth samples, intimidated by how hard it would be to make a good decision with so many colors he'd likely never even seen before, then poor Claudia! The child wasn't used to making decisions to begin with, and followed orders quickly. He'd nearly put her in a position that would have made her afraid of his wrath if she made a bad choice, and afraid of angering him by not choosing instantly. He could picture her standing there shaking, starting to cry, the drops falling on cloth that shouldn't be exposed to salt water…

Instead, he'd brought a book of swatches of cloth out and kept it closed. He would only ask her if she approved of colors one at a time. Hopefully that way he could avoid overstressing her.

This part of Lukedonia was forested, so she'd need thick leggings, and two skirts or a skirt and an apron so she could use the outer skirt like a peasant woman, to carry flowers or stuffed animals. Aprons were very practical clothing, excellent for carrying things and keeping everything clean, but like pockets it was impossible to make them work with the Lukedonian style, curse (almost all) nobles for being impractical bastards. At least the lab coat Frankenstein wore to protect his clothing from potential mishaps could have all the pockets he wanted. And no one needed to know how many of them ended up holding treats for his familiars.

With pockets, Claudia could carry treats – he'd made handing them out part of her duties sometimes, one she fulfilled with the utmost dedication. Not that she needed treats for his familiars to swarm her – she was still hurt, and they wished to comfort her.

Why did she have hair like this, if she was going to be raised with so little color in her life?

What purpose was she created for, that Lagus declared her unfit for it so young?

He kept the smile on his face, humming thoughtfully as he considered the next color, glad he had practice concealing his mood. Not that he could hide it from his familiars, and he doubted he was able to hide it from Raizel even before they… bonded.

Since Claudia felt more secure wrapped in the blankets, he'd have to consider the matter of petticoats. The weight of the extra layers of cloth might be pleasant for her.

Then a sentry told Frankenstein that Gejutel was heading towards the manor, and that noble should know not to show his face in front of Frankenstein without either answers or Lagus' papers. "Inform your Master that I am here to see Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel," the old noble said, turning to the side of the path to address a raven.

(Not that Frankenstein could be certain that Gejutel was old by noble standards, but he was certainly more _mature_ than the rest of the clan leaders. There was no contest.)

The bird cawed obligingly.

Gejutel was the only noble other than Raizel to make such casual use of Frankenstein's familiars, and he had since the beginning. When Frankenstein questioned Gejutel about it, the noble's response was interesting. He'd said, "You think you're the first human to think of bonding with animals? We did it first, but you humans enjoy making other species do your bidding." That was another bit of data indicating that Gejutel was older than most nobles, that he remembered when contracts were a casual utility used by both species. Familiars _would_ be more useful to humans than nobles, when humans had less power of their own.

In the past, anyway.

"Excuse me a minute, we have another guest," Frankenstein told Claudia, who nodded.

When he glanced at Raizel, the noble nodded as well, pleased with the duty of watching over Claudia.

Frankenstein walked around the house to greet Gejutel. "What do you mean, your business is with Raizel?"

"For one thing, I'm here to deliver a summons from the Lord. As I recall, you insisted that the Lord of the nobles had no business summoning a human."

So that part of Gejutel's business, at least, had better not be with Frankenstein. "And Lagus' notes?"

"That's what the Lord wants to discuss with Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel, and any humans posing as servants that feel like strolling into the palace." Instead of Raizel's manor.

"So he won't tell me unless I bring Raizel?"

Gejutel's face grew stern. "It's not an excuse to make Sir Raizel visit him."

"For once."

The clan leader nodded gravely. "I suppose it's a sign of how far this madness has spread, that the Lord is being serious for once. We have failed in our duty as clan leaders."

"By not dealing with the traitors yourselves?"

Gejutel looked annoyed with the world, but that seemed to be his preferred state of being. "When a human knows more of Lukedonian customs than at least one clan leader does… It's the duty of the clan leaders to handle day to day affairs. We can't allow the Lord to deal with matters personally." Under his breath Gejutel added, "We lose more islands that way."

Frankenstein forced himself to be unimpressed; he'd leveled small islands himself. "Urokai?"

He deserved that unimpressed look: stating the obvious was no way to prove his intellect. "Before you rush off to question the Lord, I must also visit Cadis Etrama di Raizel as a matter of personal duty."

"Well, don't let me stand in your way," Frankenstein said, gesturing for Gejutel to go ahead of him on the path that went around the manor to the patio. He smiled when Gejutel looked at him, wondering why Frankenstein was so obliging. Because he was going to watch and find out about this personal matter, of course. He did need to learn more about the clan leaders.

Gejutel decided to ignore him and strode forward.

Too late, Frankenstein realized that given her father, the sudden appearance of another old-looking noble might bother Claudia. He increased his pace, but his worries were resolved by a happy-sounding, "Claudia Tradio greets the clan leader."

"The Landegre clan leader acknowledges Claudia Tradio," Gejutel said, formally but gladly. "Stand up and let me look at you," he said. "You're a clan leader now, you know. You don't need to genuflect before me."

"But…"

Gejutel looked down at her with utmost seriousness… or not. "Consider my position, Claudia. As a loyal subject, I can't permit someone to genuflect before me who doesn't genuflect when they greet the Lord, and as a clan leader you must obey his commands."

So… the Lord had ordered Claudia not to genuflect before him? Good, that would have been too much formality between a father and a step-daughter.

Claudia's eyes widened in realization, but then she frowned, unsure. He could see her straining herself to consider this question of precedence, and it reminded him of how long Raizel needed to pick shirts. Yet she didn't seem to feel any particular pressure to hurry.

No wonder the Lord foisted problem children off on Gejutel.

"Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel," Gejutel said, genuflecting to the other noble present.

Raizel was looking sympathetically at Claudia. He also often had trouble deciding what to do. "Gejutel," he said while the clan leader was still getting up.

"I have come to submit myself to your judgment. I no longer have the right to make requests of you, but I would prefer to spare you the effort of forcing me into eternal sleep. I have already made arrangements to enter it myself."

Or perhaps he was _not_ so very good with children, given that he had just said that in front of Claudia. How could he scare her like that? Frankenstein glared at him, letting a trace of power snap forward to hit the top of the noble's head. He'd intended to look at Claudia meaningfully when Gejutel turned to give Frankenstein a look of his own for that immaturity, but if anything Gejutel's head only lowered itself further.

"You have not committed an offense against power," Raizel said with unquestionable certainty even as a cat jumped up to claim his lap.

Gejutel let out a breath and raised his head.

"Congratulations on the creation of your child," Raizel said next, hands occupied with the cat.

What? What was this? Gejutel had… "You brought a child into the world when that child will have to share a house with Urokai and Ignes? I know you nobles seem to think time is infinite, but between them and Ragar you should know you won't have a moment's peace."

"Between Urokai and Ragar," Gejutel corrected him. "Ignes Kravei attacked me. I forced her into eternal sleep."

A noble, pureblooded or not, attacked a clan leader? Was she driven to the brink by the indignity of manual labor?

Had Gejutel known that would happen? What was Frankenstein saying, of course he had. "Didn't the Lord promise to spare Ignes Kravei in exchange for Roctis not putting up a fight?"

" _He_ promised to spare her eternal sleep, Frankenstein." Not Gejutel.

So the Lord had made that promise and put Ignes into Gejutel's care knowing the outcome. But shouldn't Roctis have known? It wasn't as though Gejutel was hard to figure out. Roctis must have known on some level… and he had still agreed to this.

Claudia's eyes lit up and she opened her mouth, clearly about to ask Gejutel if he _really_ had, really really? But she didn't voice the question – Frankenstein worried that she was so aware that noise was a bad thing and one shouldn't question clan leaders. He'd have to work hard to be a bad influence on the child.

Not that she was his responsibility.

Aside from the fact that Raizel was fond of her, and one of humanity's enemies planned to use her in some scheme. Yes; he had to find out all of Lagus Tradio's plans.

"You knew what Ignes was like?" Gejutel's eyes grew harsh, but it wasn't directed at the child.

She nodded. "Clan Leader said he would give me to her if she was good, but she never behaved."

Frankenstein had put years' worth of work into breaking past Gejutel's armor of experience. He really had to wonder how many centuries, if not millennia, Gejutel had spent with humans, and what _kind_ of humans, because there didn't seem to be anything Frankenstein could do that would really shock him. Insults seemed familiar, attempts to offend him expected. He could just picture Gejutel raising an eyebrow at him and saying, "I know your type, young man," – the only things that seemed to surprise Gejutel were just how much power Frankenstein had gained, and the dark nature of that power. And that second one might be less surprise than concern – reflexive concern, even for someone Gejutel had thought experimented on humans.

…The humans Gejutel knew… were they also desperate for power, if they had made contracts with him? Power to do what?

No, that wasn't the question. For what cause would Gejutel make contracts, hand out power?

 _Power to protect_.

Because that was what outlined Gejutel's fists and feet – no, his toes, he'd raised his heels off the ground, increasing his already considerable height. His eyes were glowing and his lips were drawn back just enough to reveal that his canines were at least a little longer than they should be, but the interesting thing was how close he was to manifesting Regasus.

Then Gejutel cleared his throat, and the moment was lost. The old armor slammed back down and the soul weapon subsided, but Frankenstein was grateful for the chance to see what was in there, under Gejutel's particular not-cynicism. "Excuse me. Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel, Claudia Tradio, you are summoned before the Lord."

Both of them? So this audience did have to do with Lagus Tradio's plans for Claudia. Why Raizel, then. Just as an excuse to summon Frankenstein without Frankenstein having to dig in his heels and refuse to go because of his pride as a human?

* * *

Walking into the throne room, Frankenstein had to raise his eyebrows at the décor. Walls pulsing red with power – it wasn't like this before.

Was this a blood field?

He had walked right into the Lord's blood field?! The noble with the greatest authority over blood, who had already demonstrated that he appreciated and wanted to use Frankenstein's skills by sending him Edian, and Frankenstein had walked into his grasp? No wonder he hadn't sent Gejutel and Ragar to drag him from Raizel's manor, all he'd had to do was wait!

" _He would not force me to sentence him, Frankenstein._ " Disapproval not showing on Raizel's face, Frankenstein's noble walked past Frankenstein towards the front of the room, where a single noble stood before the Lord, in the middle of the carpet leading up to the throne instead of to one side of it.

No. Not stood. A black rope of power wrapped around their body was the only thing keeping them upright. Most of his right leg and a good portion of his left were missing. A noble with maimed legs: did this have something to do with Lagus' plan for Claudia?

"Ah, three of my favorite people!" exclaimed the Lord, clapping his hands together. "And you, Gejutel. Thank you for bringing them. You can go now."

Gejutel frowned. "Lord…"

"I want you to leave _because_ you have an interest in what I'm about to say."

"…Yes, Lord."

"Raskreia?" The Lord turned to his right without even acknowledging Gejutel's obedience. "Go to the sanctuary and do what I've been doing with Levias here. Take Gejutel with you, and pick up Mergas on the way."

"The sanctuary?" asked the wounded noble.

"Raskreia will be putting up a blood field and Awakening you until the rest of the damage heals. There's nowhere but the throne room and the Lord's Sanctuary that can contain that kind of power."

"Lord, I do not deserve…"

The Lord silenced him with a wave of his hand. " _I_ deserve. It's _my_ duty to ensure the welfare of the nobles, after all. You'll be providing my daughter with valuable practice."

"Yes, Lord!" The noble attempted to genuflect and even Frankenstein winced as the whip got tangled up with the leg remnants (… or brand new legs?) and he went splat on the carpet in front of his monarch, soul weapon disappearing.

Then he rose back up into the air quickly – yes, the Kravei were one of the clans that flew in the air as easily as their clan emblem swam through the seas – as the princess descended the steps of the dais.

He took up a position behind her and to the left, and Gejutel took up his post to the right of her as they went out the throne room's double doors.

"Ignes wanted to test the limits of noble regeneration, and Roctis let her play with those under his protection. Now Raskreia will have one more clan leader who won't tolerate unwilling experiments. Speaking of which." The Lord waved a staff into existence in midair.

Frankenstein could sense it was a soul weapon, and the only wooden soul weapon was Dolor. Yet Dolor was a cane perhaps half this length with a knob on the head, and it certainly wasn't sprouting a few small twigs bearing spring-green leaves, barely unfurled.

"This is yours." Sitting in his throne, the Lord floated the staff towards Claudia, who took it carefully, a little frightened of it, and bowed. It was taller than her. Frankenstein had expected that, but it still made him smile. Perhaps it was the sight of a noble dwarfed by the power they wielded.

"Don't worry," the Lord said with a smile. "There isn't a shred of Lagus in there. Speaking of which, _this_ ," he said with a moue of distaste, waving his hand as though he was telling someone to get lost, "is yours, Raizel."

A gnarled, stunted stick appeared in midair and floated towards Raizel.

"I decline," Raizel said, and Frankenstein could see why. "It is not my style."

Yes, he'd called it, Frankenstein thought, smirking. It was a reminder that Raizel wasn't greedy for more power, hadn't given his blood to Frankenstein for power. Wouldn't try to use him. Turning down a soul weapon was extreme, but Raizel had defeated its former owner. No, this was the soul of Raizel's enemy.

"He needs to be eliminated," said the Lord, cold anger revealing itself behind the casual façade. "He should make himself useful and replenish your soul."

"I will not consume souls as my brother did."

"The alternative is that I destroy his soul, and you know how much energy that would release."

"I will contain it," Raizel promised his Lord.

"You mean die trying to contain it. I think your bonded would have something to say about that."

Yes, and that was, "No." Absolutely not. "What do you mean, die?" he demanded of the Lord.

"You know how wounded you are. The shield will fall when you do, and we're between two continents here – continents with humans living on them." To Frankenstein, he said, "Raizel is the Noblesse. It his duty to sentence those who commit offenses against power - it's his job to burn up his soul to kill anyone who uses their power to bully people. But oh look!" The Lord smiled brightly. "Here we have the soul of someone who tried to burn up the souls of humans for power. It's only just that he suffer the fate he intended for them – I am the Lord, and I say this."

That seemed to mean something to Raizel, but he stood there doing his best to appear unmovable.

"His soul cannot be permitted to exist. What he planned to do to his own child… as long as he continues to exist, it is not impossible that he will be able to do it. If not to her than to the next Tradio Clan Leader, or the next, and as the Lord, responsible for the future of the nobles, I cannot permit the soul weapons to become parasites instead of gifts of love. So you see Raizel, there's no alternative. You'll just have to stick that," he waved at the stick, "down your throat and swallow."

Raizel sighed, but Frankenstein wasn't the only one who could see that he had to admit the Lord was right.

The Lord grinned and clapped his hands with delight. "And then become Lord after me!"

"I decline," Raizel said, unsurprised that when he'd given this noble an inch he'd taken a mile.

Frankenstein also gave the Lord a disapproving look because really? "That's a terrible idea. Raizel's far too kind to be a ruler; they'll walk all over him. The only worse possible position for him is this 'Noblesse.'"

"Yes." The Lord nodded, delighted. "My thoughts exactly! Don't the humans have a saying, that great minds think alike? Lord is a terrible job and Raizel isn't suited for it… but at least he wouldn't be the Noblesse anymore. That's why I keep trying to convince him to take the job when I go into eternal sleep."

Tempting. To have Raizel, someone he could trust to care about humanity's welfare in charge of the nobles… To protect humanity, he really _should_ seize this chance. Frankenstein glanced at Raizel, who gave him a flat look.

No, what did Raizel know about administration? They wouldn't respect him if a human was telling him what to do, and there was, or had been, unrest among the nobles even under the current Lord. Any remaining criminals must be terrorized into submission for now by the executions. They had been impossible to miss, even if there were no bodies to hang in the down square or heads for spikes over the castle gate. But Raizel was too soft-hearted to use execution as a tool. Except it was his duty to be an executioner? "Whose idea was this?" he demanded of the Lord, indicating Raizel.

"Your Dark Spear is very interesting. The first human soul weapon." The Lord rested his hand on his chin. "Forged from the victims of abuse of power… But they can't stop themselves from turning on their wielder even though that limits your ability to kill their enemies, can they? And having so many wills in there instead of one single will – they couldn't act very effectively at all without your mind coming up with plans and making decisions in the heat of battle."

Frankenstein's eyes narrowed as he thought through the implications. He could feel that Raizel wasn't any kind of mass mind. "The souls of nobles in eternal sleep, the ones that died unjustly… pour their power into a construct?"

The Lord sparkled at him. "Let's go with that. Only so much power, and when it's used up… The Noblesse's duty is to guard nobles against corruption. If a great many nobles become corrupted, then the Noblesse either isn't doing their job or isn't very good at it."

Was the first Noblesse the soul weapon of the first Lord? Being the only one with a soul weapon would have allowed him to conquer the nobles. And far more than that. The ability to invent such a thing? When most nobles didn't think about their powers, powers that could be applied in terrifying ways?

What else had this 'wisest of the nobles' done? Raskreia didn't even have a soul weapon, and yet when she grew angry the earth trembled, just on the edge of feeling, the way a human's cheeks reddened when they became embarrassed. Imagine a noble with intelligence near Frankenstein's and thousands of years to work with. If they created a soul weapon, they must have enhanced their own powers first. Found themselves a god among gods, just like how normal humans couldn't defend themselves against Frankenstein.

Was the Noblesse created not as a weapon, but as a check on their power? The 'first' soul weapon – had they taught the ancestors of the clan leaders how to become soul weapons to protect their descendants?

"If Raizel becomes Lord, will a new Noblesse be created?" The way Gejutel must have created a child so there was a heir for Regasus.

"Who knows? I wasn't exactly handed a set of schematics. Having to figure everything out for ourselves is supposed to be good for growing Lords."

 _Learning how to learn_. How to figure things out for themselves. Getting practice with it, yes. That would make them dangerous. And Frankenstein had conducted lessons in Raskreia's presence. A student with a mind like hers was a delight, but in a noble, how fast she learned hovered somewhere between delightful and terrifying. Had she already learned how to teach by observing him?

"We can hope," the Lord continued, pretending not to notice how Frankenstein's expression had darkened. "The fate of the Noblesse… it's too sad."

"Remove the Noblesse, and you remove the only check on your power. No, on Raskreia's. What if she becomes another Lagus?" Unlikely, but what of the next Lord, and the one after that?

"The nobles were confined on Lukedonia so that humans would grow able to do what they wanted even if nobles didn't like it. They're almost there; you're proof of that." He looked up, past Frankenstein to the great door the others left through. "My daughter's task would have been helping the nobles grow able to protect themselves against the whims of the clan leaders and the Lord, but then I realized that creating a child as a tool, for a purpose? Assigning them a fate instead of encouraging them to follow their own will? Allowing them to be stripped of their name and personal identity, to become the existence that guides the nobles… Can a world where people are no longer toys or possessions really be created with methods like that? How can someone willing to enslave their own children set anyone free?"

That… that was Frankenstein's goal. To make humans able to defend themselves, to change the world so that people were no longer stripped of their dignity and their lives, reduced to helpless victims.

Not that he could be certain he'd found a kindred spirit. Fool me once… And this was a politician. Plotting and manipulation were his job description. Frankenstein wasn't one of the people he was responsible for – oh, in theory nobles might call themselves protectors of humans, but hadn't the Lord just admitted he didn't want nobles protecting humans anymore?

"For the bearer of the first human soul weapon to find his way to Raizel's manor… You can't want to leave them like that. Any of them." The souls of Dark Spear or Raizel. "Aren't I a generous Lord, allowing a human to get your hands on the greatest weapon of the nobles?"

 _Bullshit_. Raizel might be strong, but so were ordinary nobles compared to Frankenstein. _Once_. The weapons that allowed Frankenstein to defeat his enemies were the intelligence to discover power and the will to grasp it.

The Lord had kept a blood field up and a soul weapon that didn't belong to him out this long without showing any strain. Was that a sign of how powerful he was or how much control he had over the souls of nobles within his domain, this blood field?

It grated at him to fall in line with a noble's plans, but he didn't really have a choice. "I'll steal your Noblesse the way I stole Dark Spear." So neither of them could be used against humanity.

"I decline," Raizel said automatically. Frankenstein checked, but Raizel wasn't really angry with Frankenstein. The Lord trying to control his life was a familiar vexation.

The Lord laughed and said, "I wish you the best of luck with that!"

Because Frankenstein was going to need it? No, wait. The Lord had looked between them while saying that. Was he addressing it to _both_ of them?

"Well, back to business." The Lord's cheerful smile irritated Frankenstein. "Cadis Etrama di Raizel, look at the child next to you."

Raizel glanced down and to his left at the small noble, and Frankenstein felt his resolve waver as the Lord leaned forward, sensing weakness.

"He tried to break her will even as he created her, make her nothing but a puppet for his soul to inhabit so he could escape justice. If she was an empty vessel, not a person, then he wouldn't have been committing an offense against power, and you would have had to permit it. But instead Claudia was born with a brave soul, a soul full of the will to protect, and the selfishness of her creation wounded Lagus' soul too much for him to try again anytime soon. Claudia, he called you a failure _because_ you were born a noble with the will of a clan leader, far too strong for him to displace even if he somehow managed to destroy the Noblesse. Raizel… he meant to devour this child's soul, and the souls of all the Tradio."

"He has been forced into eternal sleep for his offenses. But to destroy the soul of another to extend my own life?"

Frankenstein tapped his foot. "Speaking as someone who used to have to consume once-living beings in order to live," unlike these nobles, "Lagus Tradio's soul is going to be destroyed regardless, yes?"

" _Oh_ yes," the Lord said, smile first malicious and then reassuring when he looked at Claudia.

"As a general rule if you're going to kill an animal," not that nobles were animals, though they aped them, "it's disrespectful not to eat it. If a being is sacrificed in order to extend the lives of others, then you should at least make sure that it extends them as much as possible." Human flesh was normally an exception to the rule, but Frankenstein doubted that had anything to do with sentimentality and everything to do with the fact that human flesh could contain diseases adept at preying on humans. Pigs with their similar digestive system and species like rats and roaches that exposed themselves to human refuse were also commonly banned.

"There, see Raizel? And think about what little Claudia would want."

"You forced him into eternal sleep," Claudia said quietly, eyes downcast. "You shouldn't die because you stopped him from hurting people." When that made Claudia's life so much better.

"There are more people than just me who would be sad if you died now, Raizel. Think of your bonded's poor animals! They'll howl! It will be so noisy, even noisier than when he got here."

No, that wasn't going to work. Raizel was too gentle to like that the Lord was treating this lightly, trying to reduce the fate of someone's soul to a laughing matter. This was serious to Raizel.

" _Raizel_ ," Frankenstein said, as though tapping him on the shoulder through their bond. His familiar turned to him, with tired red eyes that had seen too many sad things. Eyes Frankenstein had seen in the mirror before he learned how to conceal that emotion from his enemies. " _I was happy,_ " he said, and let Raizel feel it.

 _Showed_ him how much he'd enjoyed piling the blankets on that bed. Repeatedly stabbing Edian to keep her down long enough for him to reinforce the chains she'd shattered – well no that one wasn't the best of examples, but making the stuffed animals and handing them to Claudia. Removing a piece of flint from his loyal wolf's foot.

He liked healing, liked helping… No. He _loved_ it. He'd missed it so.

He wanted to see Raizel recover. Wanted to see him safe and well and happy. Because that was the only way for Frankenstein to be happy. When his animals were well, when they came to him without fear, then he could forget that he was outcast from humanity. That people were _dying_ because he wasn't helping them.

" _There have already been too many I couldn't save_." And it ate at him. Raizel knew that, and felt the same pain in his own soul. " _Please don't reject the chance they didn't have_." Because Frankenstein couldn't give it to him. _"You are my responsibility."_ An existence he had to, no, that he _could_ care for, and what a precious gift that was, to be able to let someone close.

" _I don't want to fail you. I don't want to watch you die. If you won't do this for your own sake, then do it… then please do it for mine."_ Because Raizel might be his, but wasn't his to order around. _"For mine, and the Lord's,"_ for whom Raizel felt some almost filial affection, _"and Claudia's. She wants you to do this, and hasn't she had enough of what she wants not mattering?"_

Raizel looked at him, fond and sad. _"You both have had too much_ ," he reflected, and stepped forward. His right hand grasped Dolor and Frankenstein could feel his will focus as his hand clenched, shattering the soul weapon into floating red lights with will instead of mere strength. Raizel's pale hand reached out and grasped at one of the lights, Raizel looking at it dubiously, the way he had some of Frankenstein's stranger-looking dishes.

Frankenstein held his breath as Raizel deliberated. He only let it out when Raizel brought the soul fragment to his lips.

Judging from his expression he didn't like the taste. It should have been obvious that he wouldn't, but it still seemed pedestrian. Patients not liking medicine was such an ordinary thing.

Frankenstein would put extra sugar in Raizel's tea when they returned home. For this, he would bake him whatever cakes and sweets he wanted, even if he had to cross an ocean for the ingredients. Because he could feel that power refilling empty reserves, giving Raizel enough energy that his soul could make more than a token effort to stop itself leaking power. Frankenstein had done what he could to set up a reflective barrier around Raizel, but this was power Raizel could use to heal without burning up more of himself in the process.

A relieved sigh passed his lips, and he could feel the tension leave his shoulders as he watched, trying to catch everything that was happening to see if he could find a way to reproduce it without paying such a price.

Even as he relaxed, movement caught his eye, Claudia leaning up and around Raizel to look at Frankenstein. He saw her smile, eyes brightening, and he nodded to confirm what she'd read on his face.

It worked.

"I believe that was everything," the Lord said quickly, dismissing the blood field with a wave of his hand. Frankenstein gave him a token glare, but then he realized it wasn't a bad idea, to change the subject so Raizel's mind didn't linger on what he'd just done and feel guilty for no reason. Then the Lord leaned forward in anticipation. "Unless you want me to give you the talk?"

Raizel sighed, but the Lord just smiled and continued, saying, "Gejutel is a little busy, so you might have to wait, but he's contracted with more humans than I have and can give you more juicy details."


	9. Chapter 9

As a child, Frankenstein loathed being touched.

His body often made it impossible to ignore grime, demanding with crawling skin that he get it off and making it impossible to enter the focused state he needed to do his best work. Or worse, applied that focus to the need to _get it off_ and refused to let him return to a normal frame of mind for more than a few seconds.

His enhancements gave him more control over his body, but then he learned paranoia. That in fact his body had been quite right, to make such vehement demands for cleanliness.

That they were out to get him.

It was feeling through his familiars' senses, inhabiting their bodies that let him moderate the tendencies. He could experience touch that didn't set him off. Touch that was actually pleasant. People had told him that it was, of course, but it was such an alien concept to him... And when those who cared for him knew that being touched bothered him, they refrained from doing something so upsetting. That meant the only people who touched his body were strangers and enemies. Being touched when one didn't want to be touched was unpleasant even for ordinary people, even if their reactions weren't as extreme.

But his familiars could curl up with their families, act out dramatic death scenes when their young stalked and 'killed' them to encourage their children… Frankenstein obviously didn't eavesdrop when his familiars were intimate, but experiencing, even secondhand, touches that weren't unpleasant seemed to have taught his brain that not all touches were unpleasant.

And his familiars weren't strangers or enemies – they were allowed to curl up in his lap. It made them happy and their happiness was his.

Like Raizel's happiness now.

He needed to take a break from his work now and then – spend it cleaning, drinking tea, something to let his mind lie fallow. It was essential to the creative process even for those who needed less than a half-hour's sleep to receive the full benefits.

It was pleasant to sit drinking tea, a familiar on his lap.

It was also pleasant to lie on a familiar's chest, here in bed, sunlight falling on the bare skin of his back. Normally he slept fully clothed, in case something came up in the night, but he didn't need to fear attack here.

Raizel was fully clothed, but it didn't occur to him to find that disappointing. Not when Raizel's hands were bare. Feeling flesh against flesh was already a novelty without being pressed to another man's bare chest.

It felt _delectable._ The smell of freshly-washed sheets and blanket covers in the sunlight and fresh air helped pacify his need for cleanliness and purity. Feeling Raizel's wonder and affection reassured him that this wasn't an enemy within his guard, ready to strike at his neck, but his dear Raizel, who adored him so. It made him want to reach up and pat Raizel's head – 'yes, yes, I love you too' – but that would have required moving. After so long always moving from place to place, trying to outrun not merely his own death but the deaths of so many others, to be able to stay in one place for _years,_ to be able to spend a morning doing nothing?

Well, not quite doing _nothing_ , he was on call. He couldn't start up a project when he might need to drop everything to attend to Edian, and it certainly wouldn't help her mental state for him to be there hovering. So why not spend these hours with Raizel?

Eyes half-lidded slid closed as he nuzzled under Raizel's hair to find the bare skin of his neck, resting his lips against it. Raizel's hands rubbed his back, a noble's strength easily able to penetrate deep into even Frankenstein's muscles. Frankenstein let out soft little sounds as fingers moved in circles on either side of his spine. There wasn't any need to restrain himself, keep Raizel from hearing the sounds he drew from Frankenstein's body. No one would be able to get near them, not with Raizel and his other familiars watching over him. It was safe to relax his guard, to melt into Raizel's touch as the noble learned his body.

For a moment, he imagined himself a pampered pet.

He'd dedicated his life to taking care of others. Being taken care of for once… it wasn't so bad.

* * *

Gejutel waited until Claudia was back with the Lord and Raskreia in the castle for a week to visit the manor again and discuss contracts. Not only was she too young for one, but she seemed to have taken a liking to Frankenstein, so he wanted to avoid Urokai attacking or speaking badly of Frankenstein in her presence.

Like so: "How could you put your filthy soul all over Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel!"

It was a pity that Frankenstein and Raizel were out on that patio Frankenstein built this afternoon, Frankenstein taking advantage of the sunlight to make embroidery trim, likely for one of Claudia's dresses from the designs of purple flowers and animals. If a fight broke out inside and Urokai damaged Raizel's mansion, rebuilding it would have been a lesson for him.

Frankenstein was already growing annoyed, stabbing that needle into the ribbon with extra viciousness. "The _filthy_ soul you're sensing from him isn't _mine_ , it was one of you clan leaders. And it was _your_ Lord's idea."

Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel closed his eyes; clearly it was taking all the Noblesse's elegance not to comment. He continued petting the cat in his lap.

Ragar stood next to Gejutel: the young clan leader understood what an honor it was that he was allowed to hold Rousare. He had _better_ understand that it was his duty to remove the child from the immediate vicinity if Gejutel had to _discipline_ Urokai. And find a good place for them to watch from; Gejutel believed that children should be exposed to violence early, so that they had good examples of when to use it. How could Lagus isolate Claudia, keep her unaware of the concept of fighting _back_ , even in the face of a clan leader's power…

Well. The Lord and Noblesse seemed to have that well in hand – even Frankenstein. Perhaps especially Frankenstein – if anyone knew about refusing to back down in the face of a foe with power and only fighting more viciously when cornered, it was this sort of human.

The Kertia moved quickly to Urokai's side. Ragar seemed to have taken responsibility for Urokai as well as Rousare. Good. Urokai needed the help more. Gejutel had never thought he'd see the daywhen _Ragar Kertia_ would be the sensible one. "Urokai, you are being talkative. Which is not like you," Ragar added quickly to spare Urokai's feelings. The fact the lie was _painfully obvious_ would really just make it worse. "In front of Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel."

Urokai paled, then just grew angrier to cover up his embarrassment. "Sir Raizel, you must see the truth."

"I appreciate your will to protect me, Urokai," said Raizel. "But I also appreciate Frankenstein's will to protect me." He looked down at the bonded animal in his lap. "And theirs." The animal accepted a scratch behind the ears happily.

Ragar watched and then, looking down at the child in his arms, attempted to imitate Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel. Rousare was confused, of course – Gejutel might not remember much in the way of details from his childhood, but he did remember that the entire thing had been _deeply_ confusing even before his parent allowed those humans to walk off with him because they were going to fight werewolves to protect other humans and this would be a valuable experience for Gejutel.

She was correct – or at least the Lord seemed to think so. After dealing with the kind of human that insisted on fighting werewolves for generations, Ragar was positively restful. Urokai was the kind of human, noble or not, that required several thumps on the head before they stopped trying to fight werewolves alone, without other humans for backup. Fortunately, as a clan leader Urokai could survive more powerful blows to the head than could safely be applied to humans.

"Urokai, remember why you came here." Gejutel said, to hurry this along. He'd like to get started on beating some elegance into Urokai this millennium.

"I challenge you!" Urokai declared, pointing at Frankenstein. "I'll show Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel that you fight dishonorably and can't be trusted so you won't be able to use him any longer!"

"A challenge?" Frankenstein didn't even look up from his work. "Then as the challenged party I have choice of time, location, and weapons, or are challenges nothing but an opportunity for an aggressor to seize the advantage among nobles?"

"Pick something that gives you an unfair advantage, so Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel can see what cheap tricks you're willing to use! No matter how much power you gained from torturing humans, such disgusting power won't be enough!"

Now Frankenstein looked up, eyes narrowed. "Again, you're confusing me with Lagus Tradio. Then again, why am I surprised that a noble pinned his crimes on a human; it's what you were doing, blaming humans for the mutants you inflicted on us. I should challenge you to a tea-making contest."

Urokai's eyes lit up and no matter how much he deserved it, Gejutel still winced.

"But I won't inflict your swill on my Raizel."

Thank goodness. At least Frankenstein could be counted on not to act irresponsibly when his familiars were involved, and that included Cadis Etrama di Raizel now.

"We'll let Raizel make the decision," Frankenstein decided. "Since he's the one whose opinion matters." Not Urokai.

"You will treat each other with the proper courtesies," Raizel said immediately. "The next to speak or act inappropriately," he looked meaningfully at Rousare, "will pay for their sin in compliments."

"Compliments?" Frankenstein asked. "I'd have to say nice things about Urokai?"

"Frankenstein, you have lost the challenge."

"That wasn't…" Frankenstein shut up in the face of Raizel's look. He knew what he'd implied. "Your hair is a beautiful color," he told Urokai. At the end of the sentence he opened his mouth to go on, but the raven on his shoulder helpfully bashed his ear with a wing. "Best two out of three," he said, glaring at Urokai.

"Urokai, will you accept Frankenstein's challenge?"

"Of course! There's no way I'll lose to a human like you!"

"Urokai… You lose." Raizel sighed.

"…What?" Urokai demanded.

"Calling Frankenstein human is not an insult, but you meant it to be one," Gejutel explained because it was difficult for someone as gentle as Sir Raizel to speak badly of people. "We'll have words about that later, Urokai. Frankenstein is despicable because of his actions, not his people."

"You must also say something nice about Frankenstein now," Raizel told Gejutel.

Gejutel wasn't happy, but, "If I must – the Lord has given me the responsibility of being a good example for Ragar and Urokai, and I have a child to think about. Frankenstein?"

"Yes?" The human smirked in anticipation.

"Regardless of how you gained that power, you did good work killing those criminals. The Lord was pleased to hear that scum had been eliminated."

Raizel sighed. "Gejutel… You have failed again. Do not insult Frankenstein for taking the sins of others upon himself to protect the innocent."

Frankenstein frowned. "Raizel, if I wanted to correct him, I would do it myself. It's none of his business how I became strong enough to clean up his messes."

"You do not deserve the lies Lagus spread about you. They are worrying Urokai." Raizel looked at the noble in question with concern. "I saw what Lagus told you, and I appreciate your concern, Urokai, but all of you must stop spreading lies about Frankenstein."

Frankenstein frowned and Gejutel could feel the bond open between them. Raizel sat there, refusing to budge in his judgment. "I will not stand by while you are hurt."

Frankenstein scoffed. "As though I care what nobles think of me."

They all saw Raizel giving up for now – on trying to get Frankenstein to mend his ways at least, since he turned to Urokai expectantly.

Urokai stared at him.

"You must say something nice about my bonded," Raizel said patiently.

"That…" Urokai began to protest, but was stopped by Raizel's eyes. The animal in his lap had the same look trained upon Urokai. So that was how Raizel had learned such a dangerous expression. "But…" He looked at Frankenstein and back at Raizel, pointing at the human, as though to ask what Urokai was supposed to say, when there wasn't anything nice to say about him.

"If you do not say something nice about Frankenstein, that will be an insult, and you will lose the challenge two out of three," Raizel said. "If you win, I will accompany you for a week. Raskreia considers that a good amount of time to keep someone company." She was the Lord's daughter, and would inherit his wisdom.

"Go with Urokai?" Frankenstein moved almost as quick as Ragar to hover over Raizel, worried. "But Gejutel is having him work outside! Dust from the construction might land on your clothes, you might even get rained on! What if Gejutel has to discipline him again and you're caught up in the battle, you might get injured when you're still not well."

"You're _so_ concerned for Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel's well-being." Urokai was obviously sarcastic, but Raizel nodded, probably accepting it just to get this over with.

"Yes, he is," the Noblesse said, to make it clear. "The third challenge begins now. The first not to treat the other with the proper courtesies loses." He looked up at his bonded. "Frankenstein, it is rude not to offer guests tea and snacks when we are having them."

Frankenstein glared at him… no, at the cat in his lap. "You're being a terrible influence on him," he accused the animal, who just looked at Frankenstein, blinked slowly, and went back to staring at Urokai.

After Frankenstein stalked off, Gejutel adjusted a chair to sit across from Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel. "The Lord has ordered me to tell all of you what I know about contracts. _True_ contracts, not that criminal filth selling their souls and power."

Discussing something so inelegant with Cadis Etrama di Raizel, Ragar (very likely to get strange ideas) and Urokai (who wanted to get strange ideas)? What good was Frankenstein being such a know-it-all if he couldn't find out about things like this for himself?

* * *

When Frankenstein returned with the tea cart and the stuffed Gejutel he'd made for Rousare his Raizel looked very pleased with himself; Urokai's cheeks matched his hair and eyes; Ragar's eyes were downcast in that worshipful way of his when the Lord came up in a conversation and Gejutel was sitting at the table with his child in his lap. He must have taken the infant away from Ragar before he could infect Gejutel's child with his foolishness.

Frankenstein was disappointed that Gejutel took the stuffed version of him in stride, but then if nobles were worshipped, had humans made idols of them? Frankenstein shoved it into Gejutel's hands, to make it clear Frankenstein didn't want it and was no kind of Gejutel-worshipper. "It's for the child, when you're not with him."

Gejutel frowned.

"Don't tell me you keep Rousare with you while you're attending the Lord or going on missions for the Central Order Knights."

Gejutel coughed into his hand, forced to admit Frankenstein was right.

"So, when did you decide to kill Ignes Kravei – I mean, conceive your son?" Frankenstein asked, sitting down and leaving the guests to get their own tea. He did hand Gejutel the bottle he'd warmed, and raised an eyebrow when Gejutel looked at the nipple and was able to figure out what it was for.

"Seven weeks ago," the old-looking noble said, holding the bottle up to Rousare and nudging it against his mouth until Rousare figured out what he was supposed to do with this. In humans, it was instinct to suckle, but for nobles apparently not. Yet more evidence for his notes that nobles had little to do with humanity aside from historically and cosmetically.

"At seven weeks, a human who decided to create a child wouldn't even know whether or not they'd succeeded in starting the process. Dare I ask…"

"No, I didn't create him inside my body, I've seen enough humans make children that way that I know it's a terrible idea. I also haven't created a mental link with anyone. It works out well for you humans that you can't create children until you've performed that bonding ritual you're so fond of at least once, but while you want to be sure there's someone else to love the child if something happens to you, I can expect to not enter eternal sleep until Rousare is able to comport himself like a proper clan leader." Gejutel grimaced as an unfortunate thought crossed his mind. "The Lord decided to make certain of it."

"…You are referring to sex."

Gejutel and Raizel both nodded, while Ragar and Urokai looked at each other.

Frankenstein raised an eyebrow. "You have _had_ sex?" The question was addressed to Gejutel and Raizel, not the obvious virgins on the patio.

Gejutel looked at him like he was an idiot and nodded, but Raizel shook his head. "The Lord speaks highly of it, but my duty is in Lukedonia." So the attempt to get him out of the manor would have annoyed Raizel.

"It's pleasant enough, but it can be unpleasant." Gejutel looked pensive. "Humans have started misusing it more often since you started turning the forests into plains and the plains into deserts. The Lord warned against sex with human males – although the Central Order Knights aren't supposed to bond with any of you, that ends in contracts – after a few too many Central Order Knights were seduced by humans with dishonest intentions."

Frankenstein laughed. "Humans, seduce nobles? I can't tell you how many times I've been told that we're ugly insects to you."

Gejutel frowned deeply. "Humans became very, very good at seducing nobles into contracts. It appears you haven't lost your skills," he added, looking meaningfully at Raizel. "The Central Order Knights are _supposed_ to learn the discipline to resist your wiles no matter what they are tempted with. That so many of them abandoned their honor for mere power and baubles they should be able to create with a flicker of will… It seems we mistook obliviousness to temptation for resistance to it." He rocked Rousare in his arms absently.

Gejutel would have begun to create Rousare when he decided to force Ignes Kravei into eternal sleep. If a human decided to try to conceive that long ago, they still would have no idea if they'd succeeded in becoming pregnant or not (periods could be skipped for a host of reasons). Instead, here was Rousare. Already capable of surviving without a host body or even a parent.

It was hard to gauge the baby's age, but his eyes were already able to focus on Frankenstein and grip Gejutel's stole. That didn't mean much: a noble's body did what they wanted it to. "The Lord seems to think you're the clan leader best equipped to raise children."

"I watched over a lot of young humans," Gejutel said. "Not that you ever grew up," he added, not even bothering to say it under his breath.

"Speaking of the young and their educations, weren't you supposed to talk to me about true contracts?" Not just Raizel and the two clan leaders Gejutel was babysitting.

Gejutel sighed. "First, the most terrible thing that can happen to a noble is to be forced to go against who they are. In a true contract, the human has power over a part of our souls. If that power is misused, that is _our soul_ they are forcing to act in a way that undermines our integrity. Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel's soul is delicate by nature. If you misuse his power, Frankenstein…"

Frankenstein held up a hand. "Why don't we just skip everything to do with the human using the noble's power. _Because I won't be_."

He saw the light of comprehension in the old noble's red eyes, but Gejutel gave him a suspicious look. "Not even for your experiments?"

"Not when he's sick and that would be harmful to him. I am a doctor."

"Am I supposed to believe this?" Urokai demanded of Gejutel.

"He won't," Gejutel told Urokai. "Frankenstein wants to prove that humans are not weak. If he used a noble's power, that would be admitting weakness. Abandoning his pride and letting an enemy see him dependant on a noble? I've known since the night I met him that he would die first."

Raizel sighed, then glanced at Frankenstein with worry in his eyes.

"I don't _intend_ to die," Frankenstein told him. "Even if that Lord has been cleaning house, I can't die until I'm certain that all of those who slaughtered humans and unleashed mutants are eliminated. I have a duty." And as his familiar, shouldn't Raizel be assisting him with it?

Did Raizel wish to assist him? He had by killing Tradio, but that was his own duty as well.

"Will you not accept my help?"

'Don't be ridiculous,' Frankenstein wanted to say, but that would be too dismissive of Raizel's feelings. "You've allowed me to stay in your home. Watched my familiars while I was out, helped me feed kittens with a dropper." And that was before Raizel gave Frankenstein his blood. Before Frankenstein was able to fall asleep in a room with fresh air. Before he started to wake up to fingernails gently tracing over his scalp – Raizel's petting techniques were top-notch. Frankenstein hadn't _told_ Raizel to caress him, of course not. Raizel seemed to think that it was just what he did with Frankenstein's familiars, and perhaps Frankenstein by extension?

Frankenstein wasn't going to tell him to stop. He hadn't figured out how to make himself immortal by being _that_ stupid.

"You've been a great help," he told Raizel gently. "The familiar bond gives you a piece of my soul. I wouldn't," _couldn't, "_ entrust that to just anyone." Not when he had so many enemies, when even Tesamu sold him out.

"You had better be careful, Frankenstein." Gejutel put a hand on Rousare protectively. "No Noblesse has ever created a child before."

Frankenstein blinked. "What?" He looked at Raizel, shocked and on the edge of betrayed. No, no, surely…

"Where did you think non-pureblood nobles came from?" Gejutel asked him. "In a true contract, the souls are alike enough they mingle together. When the human dies, it rips the portion of their souls that cannot be separated again out of the noble. That piece of soul possesses the nature of a noble, so it does not die with the human."

Frankenstein raised an eyebrow. If every true contract produced a child, Clan Landegre had _how_ many members? Even if the half-human clan members would be able to form contracts with humans themselves, that implied something about how many true contracts the pureblood members of the clan had made over the millennia. Wait. "Are you telling me that the criminals I executed had human parents? Are you trying to blame the mutants on humanity again?"

"That's part of why no one thought the Central Order Knights would be up to no good, Frankenstein. All you humans are related to each other. Even if they never knew the human who contracted with their parent," not if they were born when the human died, "they would not exist if it weren't for that person. And the last time nobles rejected our duty to treat humans with honor, they considered the non-purebloods human."

"Human?" Frankenstein laughed. The Central Order Knights, human?

He felt something from Raizel. Something dark and angry and old – not directed at Frankenstein but it still drew his attention. He had never felt anything like it from Raizel, not when he was so gentle. It would take something truly evil to make Raizel so… almost _hateful._

His concern helped Raizel lighten, and that was a relief when he didn't want Raizel to think of terrible things, but he was still curious. Something told him not to ask now, however. He would have plenty of time with Raizel. He would make sure of it. Gejutel, on the other hand, wouldn't be sticking around forever. Not if Frankenstein had anything to say about it – and he did. This was _their_ house now.

"My soul is fragile," Raizel said. "Yours is strong. You will not be torn apart when I die."

"I would hope not." Frankenstein smiled at him and frowned at Gejutel. "I hope you aren't implying that Raizel wouldn't have the decency to _tell me_ if there was a child at stake." Gejutel wouldn't _dare_ insult Raizel like that. Or he'd _better_ not.

Frankenstein couldn't even have a human child without exposing them to intolerable danger – Tesamu proved that, and he wasn't even of Frankenstein's blood. To have a noble child, even one of mixed blood? His enemies would… and what would his modifications do to the child, forget the combination of his modifications and Raizel's unique nature? He'd made sure he was sterile for good reason.

He had puppies, kittens, chicks and Claudia in some kind of de facto shared custody arrangement – she lived here half the time. He'd added lace curtains to her bed, to give her stuffed animals a sheltered den. Frankenstein was well supplied with children to look after even if none of them were human. The animals liked the sound of his voice if he read stories to them, but Claudia liked the stories themselves. Perhaps part of it was the novelty, not just of the tales but the concept of a tale and the reality of multiple adults willing to invest their time in making her happy, not just Gejutel.

…Frankenstein wasn't competing with the clan leader and the Lord for her affections, of course not. And even if he was, ahem, if it looked that way to anyone, it would be good for the child to feel wanted.

Then he belatedly noticed that Raizel had said ' _when_ I die.' No, Frankenstein wasn't going to be harmed when Raizel died because Raizel was not going to die. "You shouldn't worry about that," he told Raizel, speaking over Gejutel when the clan leader responded to his accusation. "You will be fine. I won't let you die."

Raizel just looked at him, because it would be rude to say that Frankenstein was wrong about his capabilities, or sigh dismissively at Frankenstein's affection for him.

"I mean it," Frankenstein said, putting his embroidery down on the table and standing up to go to Raizel's side. "I took responsibility for you when you gave me your blood. And I'm not the only one who cares about making sure that you are alright – there's your Lord, Gejutel, even… Urokai and Edian," he corrected himself at the last minute after remembering the insult challenge.

The cat in Raizel's lap batted Raizel with a paw.

"How dare that mangy beast attack…"

Urokai choked when Raizel glared at him with glowing red eyes. He didn't struggle against the bonds of red that wrapped around him, preventing his hand from reaching the cat Raizel held protectively.

"Urokai Agvain, I acknowledge your will to protect me, but you do not have my permission to attack those I wish to protect."

The clan leader shrank back. "Cadis Etrama di Raizel…" he pleaded.

"I am not harmed." Raizel held up the back of his hand, although really given noble healing that meant nothing. Frankenstein didn't say this.

The cat on Raizel's lap glared at their fellow familiar, then jumped down and stalked away towards the catflap in the door of the house, the line of their tail proclaiming their _deep offense_.

As they watched it go, Urokai straightened a bit, probably pleased that he'd frightened it away.

Then he noticed that Raizel looked sad.

Frankenstein agreed with his cat that, "You shouldn't spend your life to protect my familiars. That's my duty, if necessary – and that includes you."

Raizel frowned.

"I do appreciate your will to protect," Frankenstein said softly. "You're the only noble I have ever trusted to watch my back, and I haven't had the luxury of entrusting my rest to a human either, not in centuries. Please, feel what it means to me."

His noble closed his eyes obediently, and a soft smile appeared on his lips… but then he opened his eyes, seeing the trap in Frankenstein's mind, that Frankenstein had wanted him happy enough to drop the subject. "You have let your familiars die to protect you. Why am I not allowed the same choice?"

"Because…" Because Raizel wasn't just an animal was the obvious thing to say, but animals were closer to hu- to people than Frankenstein thought when he began to test animals. He'd thought they didn't have a soul, so if it weren't for the fact some high-ranking vampires did control them he wouldn't have thought to try to observe how bindings worked using them.

His parrots had minds so much like those of small, human children. Which was why, when the Union killed his spies… But he'd still let them act, let them go.

Because Raizel was sick or weak, and they weren't? Even enhanced by a familiar bond, an animal was obviously weaker than the Noblesse. Less able to survive trying to protect Frankenstein. Frankenstein certainly couldn't say that 'people' weren't expendable when Frankenstein himself was a person. As were all the people he hadn't acted to save because of the threat from the Union.

"Because… I give my familiars better lives, and usually longer, with the contract. They're healthier, and greater strength and speed keep them from starving." Even if Frankenstein had to flee and abandon them, as he'd abandoned so many homes and labs. He would be too easy to track if he took them with him, and he couldn't kill living things the way he smashed glassware. "If they wish to fight to repay me, or to preserve the source of their prosperity, I can accept that. You… I have nothing to offer you in exchange for your help. If you were a clan leader, the power I can give you would be inconsequential. Instead you could use a source of power that didn't come from your own soul, but I can't seem to find a way for you to use it." So what good was he, to Raizel?

"I do not wish to protect you in exchange for power or gratitude."

"I know, but… there is a cost to you, for your help." How was he going to explain the concept of repayment to Raizel, who had never seen money? "You gave me a home under your roof. I cannot stay here if having me here causes you more harm than good. My honor won't allow it. And I _wish_ to stay here." He pushed the feeling at Raizel, reminded him that he could sense just how true that was. "I wish to stay with you _because_ your will to protect is important to me. Because you are. Please, understand that I do not want you to fight for me or mine because I don't want to lose you."

He realized that his tone sounded like he was pleading. No, he was pleading with Raizel, even though he should have balked at doing any such thing with a noble. Raizel was Raizel, however. Then he realized that he was doing this in front of Gejutel, Ragar and Urokai and it said something about how important Raizel had become to him that he honestly didn't care. And not just because nobles had no business judging humans.

Gejutel let out a small, vexed sound. "That's a human's will to protect, Sir Cadis Etrama di Raizel. They don't think of ensuring they can protect themselves first. At first it seemed rude, trying to force me to be someone willing to be protected even if they were hurt protecting me, but there's no point in them trying to protect themselves when most of them _can't_ – humans can only protect themselves by protecting others."

While Frankenstein analyzed that and the level of insult involved (remembering the noble view of things), Raizel turned to look at Gejutel.

"I gave up and let them protect me, and focused my efforts on making sure they survived it."

"Did that work?" Ragar asked, after glancing at Raizel, clearly asking the question on his behalf.

Gejutel looked even more put out. "It worked out well enough, but since they approved my behavior I ended up with even more of them wanting to protect me. At least so far Frankenstein's only flooding your manor with animals instead of more humans." Judging from his look at Frankenstein, Gejutel considered it only a matter of time until that changed. "But, with humans it's best to give them the power to protect themselves."

Raizel's eyes widened and he turned to look at Frankenstein. When Frankenstein sent a question, he explained, "Like you. You wanted to give humans the power to protect themselves."

"Yes?" Frankenstein said, before realizing that it _shouldn't_ be that obvious, when he'd tried to cloak his true motives from the Union after realizing their selfishness – fortunately people that evil assumed he must have had an ulterior motive all along.

Now Raizel was blushing, so Frankenstein was going to have to wait awhile before he could get an explanation out of him. He turned to the others and saw another blush high on Ragar's cheeks.

He looked at Gejutel, but Gejutel avoided his eyes and coughed into his hand – obviously an affected mannerism, nobles didn't need to clear their throats manually when their powers would prevent the blockage from forming. "I suppose even a human like you, Frankenstein, is still a human."

"Gejutel K. Landegre… I have asked you not to repeat Lagus' lies. You must say something nice about Frankenstein."

"He did," Frankenstein said, patting Raizel on the shoulder. "There's no greater compliment than being called a human."

* * *

 _Whee worldbuilding/random speculation fun. It's very fun to think about how a one-gender race where the default is asexual aromantics (unless they choose to make an effort as per_ Good Omens _)_ _would perceive us, especially since they're empaths and wouldn't be oblivious to our drama/that we're enjoying ourselves._


	10. Chapter 10

_My second attempt at ending this fic, but this will be the final chapter, I'm serious this time._

* * *

Frankenstein was on hand for the birth of the kittens in case something went wrong, but dangerous births were the exception for cats instead of the rule. Instead of supervising he'd made sure the pregnant queen had a warm little den to her liking, built out of a basket he'd placed next to the fire, and was keeping both milk and beef broth warm on a brazier.

He didn't feel any worry from her until after the last of them was born. "May I?" he asked, hand on the quilted cover.

Feeling her distracted, busy assent, he lifted it up to find that most of the newborns had already been licked clean and the queen cat was working on one she might have missed until now, when this was such a large litter.

When this kitten was so small.

Calling warmth into his hands, he reached down and touched the small one, stroking wet fur with a single finger and letting the poor thing's mother sense the tiny spark of soul within the kitten through his senses. The runt still breathed, but if it was so small it might have been malformed in some way not obvious from the outside.

There were limits: he couldn't make every animal on the planet his familiar. One like this, the sick child of one he cared for… even when he had already decided not to take any more familiars for the moment, exceptions could be made unless he was about to go on the run again. The wilderness pursued by nobles and mutants was no place for a blind kitten.

This time… Hmm, no, it didn't work out nicely. Edian was a noble: a mewling kitten too young and weak to see, much less defend themselves, would be a pitiable existence regardless. A tiny, fragile life. Having one of them _actually_ be in need of assistance wasn't necessary to ensure the success of his plan to make her responsible for the litter, and Frankenstein would never think a living thing's sickness was _fortunate_.

' _Don't worry,'_ he reassured the mother, and tucked the cover back around the basket before lifting it up. ' _Yes, you can come in,'_ he told Raizel. "Would you mind bringing the milk and broth?" he asked when Raizel appeared at his side without bothering to pass through the doorway. Frankenstein considered scolding Raizel for the use of power, but it didn't seem to have affected him much and he was fairly sure Raizel hadn't realized he'd done it. He didn't want Raizel tiring himself, but on the other hand a lack of exertion could cause humans to grow sick. Standing in front of that window barely ever doing anything couldn't have been good for Raizel even if it meant he wasn't using his power much.

If you neglected a muscle and then strained it, of course the results wouldn't be pleasant. Moving like that couldn't cause Raizel pain, or else he would have noticed he'd done it, surely?

Perhaps not, when he was hovering over the basket instead of fetching the pots, radiating concern. This was exactly why Frankenstein hadn't let him be in the room for the birth: the queen was his familiar and would be able to sense Raizel's intent focus when Raizel was so powerful. His worry might have made her worry, and you didn't expose an expectant mother to stress whether you were expecting an easy birth or not. Childbirth might be less fatal for most animals than for humans, but the first time Frankenstein tried out the tactic of projecting fear to lure mutants toward him, every animal in that village had dropped dead of heart failure. They simply couldn't handle the amount of stress humans could, so he always did his best to keep his familiars calm and ease their fears.

"They'll be fine," Frankenstein reassured Raizel aloud as well as through the bond. "But they should stay warm. I'll open the basket again once we're in Edian's room." Raizel could see them when Edian saw them.

This was Raizel's house, but they weren't going to be his kittens.

No. No they were not. No matter _what_ kind of face Raizel kept making, looking down at the basket. If Frankenstein gave in now, who knew what else Raizel would insist on keeping just because it somehow ended up in his manor? He'd let _Frankenstein_ stay, for goodness' sake, after Frankenstein spent decades making it crystal clear that he was mad, bad and dangerous to know.

No matter how much Raizel wanted to take care of things, or how Frankenstein wanted to encourage it, to share his own love of tending life. To teach it to someone again, after his last student's fate was still unknown.

Raizel was really very hard to resist. Fortunately, Frankenstein could say, "Edian needs them," and move the basket away so it was no longer in tempting reach. Raizel let out a cute little sigh – he knew what Frankenstein was doing – but he _did_ know that Frankenstein was right, and wanted to help Edian.

The important thing was that he no longer felt so… not quite sad, not just disappointed, but empathetic? That was it; if there were small things in need, then Raizel's own desire to help them reinforced Frankenstein's own, and Raizel was oblivious to the practical reasons he couldn't help everyone.

Frankenstein, on the other hand, hated the things that kept him from helping.

* * *

Lukedonia's seasons and weather only made sense after he complained about them to Ragar and was told that the head of the Elanor clan was in charge of ensuring the trees and grass weren't killed by a lack of water. Although there were bridges to Lukedonia in a handful of places, including a certain cold northern coastline, the island itself was in some place there were no seasons, other than a period of torrential storms that passed through the place where the island rested and found only ocean, the way Frankenstein had excavated a root cellar that should occupy the same space Raizel's Sanctuary did on the nights of the full moon.

He would check to see if that did anything to his carrots and onions, but he rather doubted it.

Ragar had no idea why the island's constant temperature was closer to a temperate spring than what should be found on a tropical island, but Frankenstein hadn't expected him to know _that_ much.

One of Claudia and the princess' visits fell on a rainy day. They came along the path wearing hooded black cloaks with the shoulder patch design nobles used on their formal clothing. Frankenstein would have winced to see Claudia wearing bright lavender and lace under it in this weather, but a noble's power could keep their clothes from being ruined by the mud.

Normally that vexed him a little, but in Claudia's case he was glad he didn't have to worry. She might feel guilty or worry that he would be angry if a gift he had given her was ruined, and he couldn't have that. He'd made her those clothes to cheer her up; it would defeat the purpose if she was saddened because of them.

"Let me take your cloak," he told Claudia after beckoning her inside. "Raizel has a cup of hot tea with honey all ready for you."

Raskreia swept ahead through the halls, ignoring him and his lack of a greeting. Claudia hurried too after smiling for him, eager to see Raizel.

Frankenstein followed them into the sitting room as Raskreia sat down on the couch. It puzzled him to see that she'd swept her cloak over the couch behind her instead of sitting on it – nobles found it inelegant to take up so much space – until he saw Claudia go over to her and tuck herself in under the cloak, like a chick under a mother bird's wing.

The princess' expression, normally defaulting to stoic annoyance, couldn't help seeming a little pleased and proud, to be given the trust of a young one and opportunity to exercise the will to protect.

Frankenstein couldn't help smiling benevolently as Raizel reached down to give Claudia her cup, and then returned to the table to bring Raskreia's next. He covered the expression with a white-gloved hand. Perhaps he was starting to like Raskreia enough he didn't want to openly patronize her.

That was good, he supposed: he needed to stop doing that, Raizel was correct. Especially when Claudia was here – she didn't need more bad examples.

Instead of rising to greet the princess, Edian remained sitting on the other couch, drinking her own cup of tea. Raskreia also regally ignored her, and while Claudia glanced at the clan leader (to see who it was?) once she was safely inside the shelter of Raskreia's wing… ahem, cape, she didn't greet her either.

The visual contrast between Raskreia's best attempt at serene elegant menace in stark black and gold and the small colorful fluff peeking out from under her metaphorical wing was simply adorable.

Greeting clan leaders involved that genuflection nonsense and there was tea to drink before it got cold. Nor could Edian get up without dislodging the kittens on her lap. Now that Raizel had returned to his own tea, the three adult nobles in Frankenstein's… in Raizel's sitting room sat there pointedly ignoring each other in a way that made Frankenstein's decision to hand Edian over to the cats seem like an even sounder decision. There was a definite resemblance.

Edian drank the last of her tea and put the cup down on her lap for a curious kitten to put a paw on it, tipping it over and crawling inside, followed by one of their siblings.

"The Lord has granted me responsibility for Sir Edian," Raskreia said.

That left both Edian and Raizel looking at her, perplexed. Seeing their reactions, she raised her chin.

"That makes sense," Frankenstein said, to break the silence before Raskreia could feel awkward or ashamed. The princess was intelligent, but her understanding of social skills was lacking. He couldn't help but feel sympathetic – he knew what _that_ was like from his own youth.

Raskreia looked at him, both surprised and glad that her father made sense to anyone who could explain this latest order.

"Looking after Claudia, the Kravei clan leader and now the Drosia clan leader will be valuable practice for your future responsibilities as Lord." Frankenstein pretended he was oblivious to how the feeling in the room changed. "The humans call it on-the-job training," he went on, continuing the conversation whether the nobles wanted to talk about whatever was so awkward or not.

Raizel nodded, and both Raskreia and Edian turned towards him a little, failing to conceal something like, hmm. Surprise?

Claudia was looking back and forth between people's faces. Oh dear, she'd noticed that the adults weren't happy. Frankenstein gave her a reassuring smile and she smiled back weakly, withdrawing a little more under Raskreia's cloak.

"The Lord has said that he wishes for Cadis Etrama di Raizel to be the next Lord." Raskreia was the one with the fortitude to take action. "He feels that I am not adequate as a heir, and assigns me tasks like sitting across from Raizel hoping I will cease to disappoint him."

Frankenstein raised an eyebrow, then turned to Raizel. Really? "I thought he was joking when he asked you to be the next Lord."

"It is my fate to be the Noblesse. He wishes to change that."

That made Frankenstein frown at Raizel. "At the cost of chaos in Lukedonia? The nobles already couldn't keep control of their military," the widespread misbehavior of the Central Order Knights, "and how many of the clan leaders were neck-deep in it? Even now they're dealt with, things are certainly… unstable. He can't be planning to stick _you_ with that mess. You're not a politician."

Raizel frowned. "As Noblesse, it _was_ my mess to clean up."

"I suppose as Lord you shouldn't have had to carry out their executions yourself," since the Lord had violated protocol by doing just that, "but there's a lot more to being a ruler than dealing with traitors. Different groups with different competing needs – remember what happened the first time I left you alone with my familiars?" And Raizel couldn't deal with the animals competing over the limited resource of his attention in a manner that didn't destroy his sitting room? "Disorder in Lukedonia leads to nobles causing chaos in the human world. If you became Lord I'd have to step in to help handle the politics and legal matters for you, and I have my own responsibilities." Frankenstein smiled. "The welfare of the nobles wouldn't be my first priority." He tilted his head, pretending to look thoughtful, smiling slowly as he considered the idea of a human ruling over the nobles.

That got Raskreia glaring at him. Hadn't the Lord noticed how much all this was bothering his daughter? Frankenstein didn't know the noble well enough to tell – people could have the strangest blind spots. In the Lord's case he was both a noble and a politician, so who knew what he was plotting.

"But he can't force you to be Lord against your will," Frankenstein said, trying to make that sound regretful instead of threatening. The Lord had _better_ not try anything like that. "So he should stop using the threat of replacing her with you to motivate Raskreia. Not only is it irritating, it's also backfiring."

Edian looked the most openly lost, so he addressed her when he explained, "I'm sure he's thinking of how convenient it will be for Raskreia, if she proves her fitness as Lord to everyone now, by taking care of things," like Edian, "so that her authority is unquestioned once she becomes Lord. But suggesting that he wants Raizel as Lord instead of her, even if he can't be serious," he had _better_ not be, "will undermine confidence in her instead of create it."

He might be giving the noble Lord too much credit by inventing a reason – if not a good reason – for this absurdity, but Raskreia had enough resemblance to Raizel that he didn't want her to think that her parent was causing her distress for no reason at all.

Something was approaching. High velocity, fast enough his familiars wouldn't have seen it if they were still ordinary animals. No noble aura.

Frankenstein didn't stiffen in alarm, not when Raizel recognized whoever this was and got up to open the window.

"Yo," the werewolf – he had to be – greeted them cheerfully, vaulting in over the windowsill. "So you're that human the humans are all talking about." There was something false and toothy about that grin. "Raizel, I heard he's been…"

Raizel shook his head.

The intruder folded his arms. "Sure?"

Raizel nodded but the werewolf still looked skeptical. "You're too nice. Guess I'll have to stay to see for myself." He plopped down on the couch across from Claudia and Raskreia and then seemed to notice Claudia. He smiled at her and waved a furred, clawed hand.

When she tentatively waved back, he said, "Hey there. You're about the same size as…" he paused, then looked around before settling on Raizel. "Hey, Raizel, why don't you leave the house with me? It'd be good for you to get away for a bit."

If Frankenstein hadn't felt that Raizel sensed something, it would have made very little sense when Raizel finally blinked, let out a little sigh that seemed almost token and nodded at the werewolf.

" _Muzaka_ ," Raizel told him, and let Frankenstein sense his excitement but not the cause. No, more than excitement, this was important for some reason?

"Great!" Muzaka sprang to his feet, surprised but not looking a gift horse in the mouth. "Why don't we head out, and I can ask about how Frankenstein is treating you on the way…"

Frankenstein had put a great deal of work into his bad reputation, but it was growing _annoying_ that people kept assuming Raizel needed to be protected from him. Despite Frankenstein's usual treatment of the nobles he kept prisoner, true. He was sure that part of the reason Raizel was going with Muzaka was so that he would be out of range of Frankenstein when he told Muzaka that he was alright, really. Muzaka would know mind control existed from dealing with nobles.

"The Lord instructed me to stay here until Lord Muzaka leaves," Raskreia said, getting up.

"You knew he would be coming?" And no one told Frankenstein?

Raskreia shook her head. "It is a standing order." She stalked out of the room, hopefully to speak to her father and put an end to that nonsense.

Frankenstein tapped his fingers on the windowsill. At that speed, Raizel was already at the edge of Frankenstein's range, and it bothered him. Perhaps because far too often when he lost track of familiars it was because he had to leave them behind. Because he was being forced to abandon another base, another home… and it was for the best if they could vanish into the wilderness, live out normal lives instead of face dissection.

Or was this disquiet because Raizel was more than an ordinary familiar, a simple animal to him? Muzaka seemed to be Raizel's friend, but it was going to be difficult to suppress the animosity he felt towards the reason he could no longer sense Raizel's location and well-being.

Finally, he turned to pick up the teacup and saucer left by Raskreia and noticed that Edian looked stunned and her emotion was likely to surge into the shame and guilt that seemed triggered by far too many things to do with Raizel. He was starting to think that staying in this house was sabotaging her recovery, and not only because he didn't want another live-in noble.

One of the dogs pushed her nose against his leg. He let her know that he appreciated the thought, but… Raizel.

He hadn't missed anyone since Tesamu. He hadn't dared.

* * *

Looking down at his bed, Frankenstein frowned, finding it entirely unappealing even with his wolves there. He wanted _their_ bed, in the sunlight. He wanted Raizel there when he slept, that vast aura that blocked out the flickers of nobles in the distance so they didn't wake Frankenstein, but kept him from feeling blind or defenseless because Raizel was there, and Raizel's ability to sense danger far off was better than his own.

Centuries trying to control his emotions so they didn't get in the way of his task, and yet he was sure his crankiness would keep him from falling asleep.

Perhaps another bath might help, the ritual of cleanliness. It would make him feel less prickly and irritated at least, and he could wash his familiars.

…Or maybe it wouldn't make him feel better, when he was used to having another pair of hands. To cleaning Raizel last, when all the familiars were taken care of, and having his own back rubbed down with a rough cloth.

He was covered in soap and two wet wolves when he felt Raizel's excited aura come through one of the bridges to Lukedonia's pocket of space. It was a race to get presentable so he was there to greet Raizel at the door of the manor and find out what had him so excited.

Frankenstein's own emotions… despite the eagerness that quickened his steps, he also felt _relief_ , that his Raizel was home and safe. He should be celebrating that Raizel had left not just the manor but Lukedonia, had a good time and might be convinced to do it again, but… he was just glad he would be seeing Raizel again soon. Raizel had only been gone for one night!

Frankenstein blinked at the child Raizel held out to him. A human child… or was she? Humans weren't supposed to be on Lukedonia.

He looked up at Raizel.

"She wanted to stay with Raizel. And he thought she'd be safer. Kind of hard to say no to them…" Muzaka was saying, scratching the back of his head.

"She does not have anywhere she belongs," Raizel said.

Was this to do with when Frankenstein brought home the kittens and puppies? "I don't take human familiars," Frankenstein said, still feeling more than a little lost, even if of _course_ she could stay if Raizel was worried about her safety. It wasn't as though Frankenstein cared about Lukedonia's laws.

Raizel shook his head. "It is not possible to bond with a werewolf."

Muzaka laughed. "Hey, where you'd get the idea she's a werewolf? Ashleen's just a human kid I'm looking after because I knew her mom…"

This couldn't be the werewolf Lord, just a werewolf with the same name. What politician was this terrible at lying?

Raizel and the child gave Muzaka very unimpressed looks. Ashleen's expression was a full-on cranky pout, but Raizel seemed _displeased_ that Muzaka wasn't claiming his child.

Well, if Muzaka claimed they weren't related, then there was no reason for Raizel _not_ to walk off with her, now was there?

A werewolf with a human mother? If she was even part human, it was Frankenstein's goal to protect humanity, so… and he had no knowledge of werewolf pediatrics and he doubted anyone else did, were there health concerns with hybrids? "We have a noble child staying with us half the time – she could use a playmate close to her own developmental age."

He felt Raizel's pleasure – he'd thought so too. "Why don't you come inside, and have some tea and cakes while we introduce you to everyone?" he asked the child.

"Cakes?" she said, with both eagerness and longing, and he felt himself that Raizel was right – this child didn't have a home. Anymore?

Raizel put her down and she took his hand, walking with him into the manor.

"I suppose you can stay here while she's here," Frankenstein told Muzaka as he ushered him indoors. "Raskreia often stays here with Claudia. Do young werewolves require any kind of special diet? What are her favorite foods?"

It was Raizel's house, so if he wanted to keep her Frankenstein would first get her settled.

And then perhaps he might see if she needed a nap. Or at least if she would be willing to play with Claudia while _Frankenstein_ took his rest. If she was a half-werewolf and Muzaka 'knew' her mother, then he could keep an eye on his daughter and her new playmate while Frankenstein made sure Muzaka hadn't tired Raizel out or made Raizel sick. If Muzaka had, Frankenstein would need to plot revenge as well.

* * *

That afternoon, lying in bed after Ashleen went with Claudia to see her stuffed animal collection, Frankenstein pressed a kiss to the side of Raizel's neck and murmured, "Welcome home."

Raizel made a pleased, soft noise, and Frankenstein smiled and kissed again, feeling those fingers rub his back where knots would have formed from the stress of Raizel's absence if he wasn't enhanced.

His beautiful, sweet, honorable creature- no, his dear _Raizel_ , who he could trust at his back, whose hands felt so good on his back. He wanted to trace Raizel's lips with his fingers, wanted to kiss them, kiss him _everywhere_ , wrap himself around Raizel and never let him go. His bonded, his refuge, the one who opened his window to Frankenstein's familiars and his home to Frankenstein.

Propping himself up on an elbow, he looked down at that face and smiled at the thought of kissing those lips.

Perhaps his desire for Raizel was not simply aesthetic, a product of noble allure. He was capable of enjoying touch with Raizel, not simply touching him but being touched in return. Held. On a spiritual level… oh, on a spiritual level there was no doubt at all. His soul had curled up around Raizel before his body had.

"May I?" he asked, brushing a finger over those lips, knowing that he would be understood.

A small blush that was simply too much for Frankenstein's heart, a tiny nod, a struggle for those features to remain serene.

Unfortunately the emotion that ended up dominant was confusion.

Oh dear. "A kiss is different." Special, but when Raizel was so innocent, should he have expected him to know that? Or was it that the amount of contact they already had went far beyond mere affection by the standards of the reserved nobles? His captives had found being touched at all quite shocking: he'd thought it was mostly because it was a human forcing them to hold still and submit to whatever he was doing to them, drawing their blood for example, but consider Gejutel.

He was in loco parentis to Ragar and now others, but there was none of the contact, like claps on the back, you would normally see. And it wasn't as though Ragar was standoffish. Frankenstein appreciated noble physical reserve once he began to spar with Ragar and they became 'friends' because he didn't enjoy the normal level of touch between friends, but now it worried him.

Just _how_ intimate had he been with Raizel? Had he already been engaging in contact designated as sexual with him, or was it that nobles didn't see a distinction between sexual and other affectionate contact?

"I consider it very different." A kiss on the lips felt unprecedented to Frankenstein – an exchange of germs that should have revolted him, but had his subconscious finally absorbed that microorganisms died on contact with nobles or was it a matter of warring impulses…

He was beginning to feel annoyed by how little he knew about his own species because he'd needed to study the damn… well, _partially-damned_ nobles. He'd have to correct that. Well, after the immediate necessities, like noble pediatrics, werewolf pediatrics, the mechanics and possible issues of human-werewolf hybrids…

Noble sexual mores. Couldn't forget that. A golden opportunity to embarrass Gejutel, for one thing. He'd meant to ask last time, but other things had come up and there would have been too much opportunity to insult Urokai in that conversation. He couldn't risk losing the challenge.

How was he supposed to explain this to Raizel? They were already physically intimate. An emotional component? They had the familiar bond. Or True Contract, but _did_ Raizel see that as different from the familiar links?

Yes.

"To humans, this is something like a True Contract." Well, not necessarily. It could be just done for physical pleasure… Or bought and sold, or unwilling… Just like the contracts the criminals were making, come to think of it.

"I consent," Raizel said for him, and Frankenstein let himself bend down to taste.

Soft. Wet, in a way that sent a shudder down his spine that was predictable yet confusing because he thought he might… like… this?

For how familiar it was, to be buried in Raizel's sweetness, in the affection of his familiars, it was still so very strange to feel his body, that had always loathed anything base and disgusting, feel such uncertainty, caught between the urge to push this away and the instinct to open his lips further and…

And there was no rush. No rush at all. He could rely on Raizel to be here, to card fingers through his hair, and… nose at his cheek? That was new, but utterly adorable. Frankenstein smiled and let the tension in his spine from a body that didn't know which way to move, only that motion was required, fall away.

This was Raizel. Safe, sweet, familiar.

Home.


End file.
